2nd Jun 2015 10:48
LONDON (Alliance News) - UK Energy Secretary Amber Rudd has spoken and written to the so-called "Big-Six" energy suppliers to question them about whether prices are reflecting companies' costs as the government places pressure on the companies over their energy prices, the BBC reported Tuesday.
"In light of the greater regulatory stability we are providing and continued stability in wholesale gas prices, I believe that energy suppliers should be seeking to regain the trust of consumers by reflecting this in their pricing decisions," Rudd said in a letter that has been reportedly been seen by the BBC.
A spokesperson for SSE PLC told the BBC: "Two price cuts in 13 months and an unrivalled price freeze until July 2016 proves the importance SSE places on giving customers lower prices for longer. Providing this peace of mind for customers requires a long-term approach to pricing; however, as ever, if we can cut them again, we will."
Last month, SSE PLC reported a pretax profit of GBP735.2 million for the year to end-March, 2015, up from GBP592.5 million a year earlier after its retail division, which caters for UK households, reported a substantial lift in operating profit to GBP456.8 million from GBP327.1 million a year earlier, which SSE said restored the division to a "similar level to that achieved in 2012/2013".
All the big six firms - SSE, British Gas, part of Centrica PLC, Scottish Power, part of the Iberdola Group, nPower, EDF, and EOn - cut gas prices earlier in the year, but campaigners say this failed to reflect continuing falls in wholesale costs, said the BBC.
The UK Competition and Markets Authority has been investigating the energy market since last summer. It has already reported that gas and electricity customers could have cut their bills by moving their custom to new products or different suppliers.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-32972057
By Joshua Warner; [email protected]; @JoshAlliance
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