LONDON - British finance minister Jeremy Hunt on Thursday said he wanted the country to become more energy efficient, outlining a new goal to reduce energy consumption by 15% over the next eight years to save money.

"By 2030, we want to reduce energy consumption from buildings and industry by 15%," Hunt said.

"Reducing demand by this much means, in today’s prices, a 28 billion pound saving from our national energy bill or 450 pounds off the average household bill."

The government was already planning to invest 6.6 billion pounds in energy efficiency, he said, but will now invest a further 6 billion pounds from 2025 to help pay for better insulation and upgraded heating systems.

(Reporting by David Milliken, writing by Sarah Young; Editing by Kate Holton)