28 March 2007
With the price controls currently applied to gas distributors expiring at the end of this month, Ofgem has pledged to keep customers' interests at the forefront of its considerations when it sets the new costing limits for the next four years.
The price control is set up by the industry regulator to limit the amount energy suppliers can recover from their customers each year.
Currently, the total revenue of gas distribution networks (GDNs) is approximately £2.3 billion per annum - now Ofgem needs to decide whether that figure should be limited further in light of the changing energy market conditions.
What follows now will be a month of consultations, interviews and discussions in which the public, gas suppliers and consumer rights groups are asked to offer their points of view.
Director of Gas Distribution, Joanna Whittington, stated that Ofgem particularly wanted views on key policy issues including the proposed adjustments in relation to accounting policies; the way in which the different types of analysis can be brought together; the treatment of regional differences, real price effects and pension costs and issues raised by the on going mains replacement programme.
All interested parties, including consumers, are invited to make their thoughts known to the regulator before April 25th.
Is your energy supplier giving you the best price and service? uSwitch.com not only compares the cost of energy plans but also gives you the supplier's customer satisfaction score. See how well your gas & electricity suppliers perform, with the uSwitch.com energy calculator - you may be surprised at the results!