Fuel Poverty V Fuel Profits

The big six energy suppliers have been accused of "cold-blooded profiteering" after official figures showed they had more than doubled their retail profit margins over the last 18 months and were now earning an average of £95 profit per household on dual-fuel bills, a profit margin for the firms of 7%. That is up from an average bill in 2011 of £1,030 and a profit margin of 3.2%,


The industry regulator Ofgem, which produced the estimates, said profits per household would reach £100 over the next 12 months.

Other new figures obtained from British Gas, EDF and the four other suppliers showed their profit margin from power generation – a separate part of the business – averaged more than 24% in 2011. They are believed to have risen since. The profit margins of the big six on their power generation divisions. EDF, the French-owned business that is currently demanding huge subsidies from the UK government to build new nuclear plants, had a profit margin of more than 30% in 2011 while Centrica's was 17%.

Sam Robertson, a campaigner with Fuel Poverty Action, said millions of UK households facing a choice of whether to heat or eat would be left wondering what difference an extra £95 could have made.