Fifth of ‘big six’ energy firms ups its prices

The company, the fifth in recent months to announce an increase, is raising bills by an average of £133 per customer.

The rises, of 15.7 per cent for gas and 7.2 per cent for electricity, are the smallest of the recent round of increases, but will still hit consumers struggling to meet the spiralling cost of food, petrol and energy.

Npower’s announcement came days after parent company RWE reported a 130 per cent increase in profits for the first half of the year.

Scott Byrom, energy expert at moneysupermarket.com, said: “This is the smallest increase to be announced by the five of the ‘big six’ energy companies, leaving just EDF Energy still to show their hand in this recent round of price hikes.

“After reporting strong numbers, it isn’t surprising the increase from Npower is considerably lower than those announced by rivals, but this move still adds around £140 to the average cost of bills for npower’s customers.”

Kevin Miles, chief commercial officer at RWE npower, apologised for the increase, but claimed it was needed to invest in green energy. “I know it hurts everyone when we put up prices and I wish we didn’t have to,” he said. “Although our half-year profits were better than last year, they do not begin to match the billions we are investing in energy for the future.

“With reduced quantities of North Sea gas, we are now forced to buy energy on the volatile global wholesale market.”

ScottishPower was the first of the major energy providers to increase its prices, in June.

Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which?, said: “The Bank of England has predicted that rising utility bills will drive inflation to 5 per cent by the end of the year, which will put more pressure on already squeezed households. It’s critical that npower and all suppliers do more to help customers cut their energy bills – whether that’s by getting on to the cheapest tariff or making their homes more energy efficient.”

JANE BRADLEY