Gas and electricity bills could rise further “significantly” next year amid the crisis in the cost of living, according to the regulator.
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Considerable price increase. Regulated energy prices will rise by 80% from October in the UK. That’s not all: gas and electricity bills could rise further “considerably” next year in the midst of a cost of living crisis, according to the regulator. The authorized pricing cap will increase from 1,971 pounds (2,329 euro) per year per average household at 3,549 pounds (4,195 euros) from October, the regulator Ofgem announced on Friday August 26.
“The rise reflects the continued rise in global wholesale gas prices, which started with the post-pandemic deconfinements, and were pushed to record highs as Russia slowly cut off its gas supplies to Europe.”argues Ofgem.
Since this threshold is calculated on the average of wholesale gas prices over the previous months, experts expect it to be raised to more than 4,000 pounds in January and up to 6,000 pounds in the spring. “We are aware of the massive impact this price cap hike will have on households across Britain and the difficult decisions consumers will have to make,” commented Jonathan Brearley, chief executive of Ofgem.
Ofgem, employers, suppliers and associations call for immediate government action to avoid a shock “dramatic” for low-income households, already faced with inflation at more than 10%, the highest of the G7 countries, while the British economy is flirting with recession.