… on a quiet day, I can hear her breathing

Tag: ofgem

  • Some of Europe’s highest energy costs expected in Britain this winter

    Spread the love

    https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/oct/23/europe-highest-energy-costs-great-britain-this-winter

    A snowy London street. Great Britain has some of the smallest gas stores in Europe after decades of relying on production from the North Sea. Photograph: Shomos Uddin/Getty Images

    Official forecasts show country will meet energy demand by paying high prices to secure imports

    Great Britain is expected to pay some of the highest energy costs in Europe this winter as its reliance on imports to ensure a steady supply is forecast to deepen.

    Energy system operators have said the country will have enough gas and electricity to meet demand over the coldest months – in part because of paying higher market prices than neighbouring markets to secure imports.

    The official winter energy forecasts were published days after Europe’s gas market benchmark climbed to its highest level since December 2022 when Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine sent prices rocketing.

    National Gas, which runs Great Britain’s gas networks, set out its forecasts after striking an 11th-hour deal with the owner of a major Belgian pipeline to keep gas flowing into the country this winter by reversing a planned capacity cut.

    The energy regulator, Ofgem, approved the deal – which will add around 10p a month to the average gas bill. Without the intervention there was a danger of gas running out in the event of a worst-case scenario where an important part of the country’s gas networks failed as temperatures plummeted.

    In addition to gas imports by pipelines, Great Britain is expected to increase imports of seaborne liquified natural gas (LNG) cargoes by about 5% from last winter, according to National Gas forecasts, at a time when market prices are three times higher than they were before the Middle East crisis severely disrupted Gulf supplies.

    …

    Continues at https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/oct/23/europe-highest-energy-costs-great-britain-this-winter

  • Energy bills to hit three-year high as Ofgem announces 4% rise from October

    Spread the love

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/energy-bills-hit-three-year-high-ofgem-announces-4-rise-october

    A gas hob burning on a stove, August 26, 2022

    TUC calls for tax increase on bank profits to pay for social tariff to cut household bills

    HOUSEHOLD energy bills will hit a three-year high in yet “another nail in the coffin” for budgets after Ofgem announced a 4 per cent rise from October.

    The regulator confirmed today that gas unit rates are set to rise from 6.29p per kWh last winter to 8p, up around 27 per cent year on year.

    It means the new cap is £1,723, which is £147 more than the same period last winter, when the October cap stood at £1,576, and 150 per cent higher than at the end of 2020.

    From October, the government’s cut to VAT on electricity bills from 5 to 0 per cent will shave around £45 a year off the average bill.

    But with experts predicting a further 9 per cent rise in January, unions and campaigners have urged the government to act again.

    Cornwall Insight predicts the January 2027 price cap will rise to £1,872, 18 per cent higher than January 2026.

    …

    C0ntinues at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/energy-bills-hit-three-year-high-ofgem-announces-4-rise-october

  • Bill payers vs billionaires: war windfalls for energy elite as bills set to rise

    Spread the love

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/bill-payers-vs-billionaires-war-windfalls-energy-elite-bills-set-rise

     A worker collects engine oil as he works at a degassing station in Zubair oil field near Basra, Iraq

    ENERGY firms raked in an excess of £6 billion in Iran war windfall profits this year, it was revealed today as households brace for yet another bill rise at the end of the month.

    Campaigners said profits generated in Britain by these companies equate to over £200 for every household in the country, while a further increase in gas prices is expected in the next Ofgem price cap announcement on August 26.

    Financial results posted by the world’s top energy firms revealed their British profits are only one part of their global profits, totalling £95bn in 2026.

    Analysis from the End Fuel Poverty Coalition (EFPC) revealed the excess profits linked to global energy market disruptions as a result of the US war on Iran, which has increased cost pressures on households in Britain, as well as other countries.

    Researchers looked at financial results posted by BP, Centrica, Chevron, Equinor, ExxonMobil, Iberdrola, Shell and Total.

    EFPC co-ordinator Simon Francis said windfall profits must be considered alongside previous findings saying a third of households are “on the brink of, or are in energy debt.”

    “These price shock profiteers are doing very well out of the Iran conflict, but they are doing little to solve the underlying problems,” Mr Francis said.

    “As people brace for the next price cap announcement on August 26 and a third of households are on the brink of or in energy debt, the energy industry watches the profits climb.”

    …

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/bill-payers-vs-billionaires-war-windfalls-energy-elite-bills-set-rise

  • Greens urge Burnham to cut energy bills before winter

    Spread the love

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/greens-urge-burnham-cut-energy-bills-winter

     Andy Burnham delivers a speech at the People’s History Museum, Manchester, to pledge to give Britain the “circuit-breaker it needs” while unveiling his plans for devolution and the economy, June 29, 2026

    THE Green Party called on prospective prime minister Andy Burnham yesterday to cut energy bills by £150 before winter by shifting policy costs off household electricity bills and onto general taxation.

    Zack Polanski’s party said a wealth tax should partly fund policies including the warm homes discount, which are currently funded through electricity bills and account for nearly 10 per cent of domestic electricity charges.

    Ofgem’s price cap rose by 13 per cent yesterday to £1,862 a year for the average household, with forecasters expecting prices to remain high this winter.

    Cornwall Insight predicted a typical household would face a bill of £1,849 from October.

    After Chancellor Rachel Reeves moved some policy costs onto general taxation in November’s budget, the Greens urged Mr Burnham and his new chancellor to do the same for the remaining five policies funded through bills, saving around £120 a year on average.

    Removing energy debt servicing costs from bills could save a further £35 a year.

    …

    Article continues at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/greens-urge-burnham-cut-energy-bills-winter

    Andy Burnham says that he doesn't have any answers.
    Andy Burnham says that he doesn’t have any answers.

  • Tax every penny of windfall profits oil and gas giants have made since illegal war on Iran, say Greens

    Spread the love
    Green Party MP Hannah Spencer by ©House of Commons, CC BY 3.0
    Green Party MP Hannah Spencer by ©House of Commons, CC BY 3.0

    Commenting on the new energy price cap announced today by the Regulator Ofgem, that could see a 13% increase in a typical household’s energy prices, Hannah Spencer, Green MP for Gorton and Denton, said:

    “Today’s Ofgem price cap announcement will leave so many people even more stressed out and worried about affording their energy bills. Millions of people are already struggling to make ends meet, and it is unacceptable that energy costs continue to shoot up whilst BP’s profits double. 

    “We need immediate government intervention. Rachel Reeves needs to step in and freeze the cap before energy bills go up on July 1st. And if she’s wondering how to pay for it, there are some people doing very well out of this crisis. The government should start by taxing every penny of the huge windfall profits oil and gas giants have made since the start of the illegal war on Iran.

    “Our energy market is incredibly unfair, built to line the pockets of shareholders whilst working people foot the bill. It’s a damning indictment of rip off Britain that simply keeping our homes warm enough in winter and cool enough in summer has become a luxury very few people can afford. We need urgent action, now.”