Britain’s biggest energy companies earned an average 40 per cent more in profits per household over winter following a collapse in the wholesale prices they paid for gas and electricity, Ofgem, the energy regulator, said today.
Net margins earned by the companies, which include British Gas, ScottishPower, EDF Energy, RWE npower and E.ON, soared from an average of £75 per average dual fuel customer in November to £105 at the start of this month.
Ofgem pointed out that the increase in margins, to its highest level in six years, was likely to be short-lived because one big supplier, British Gas, recently cut its gas prices by 7 per cent in a move that is expected to open the floodgates to further price cuts from its rivals.
Nevertheless, the report is likely to prompt fresh calls for a competition committee inquiry as Centrica, the owner of British Gas, prepares to announce 2009 profits of about £550 million on Thursday.
full article
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment