17 December 2007
Rises in bills from the UK's largest energy provider seem more likely than ever, due to a newly-released trading statement from Centrica, the parent company of British Gas.
According to the document Centrica has seen a fall in profits since June - with recent rises in wholesale gas and electricity prices beginning to bite into the firm's finances.
The trading statement follows British Gas' decision earlier this month to hike rates on its tracker products by around 15% - which analysts suggested could lead to across-the-board price rises in 2008.
Head of Home Services at uSwitch Tim Wolfenden commented: "Wholesale prices are squeezing its profits and to ensure it maintains high target margins, it will have no choice but to pass on increased wholesale costs to customers.
"For those customers who are worried or are particularly vulnerable to the impact of price rises, there are some good competitive fixed energy plans out there, which may give the protection they need - as always, consumers must compare all plans and prices available to make sure that they are on the one that really suits their needs," he added.
British Gas currently retains around 16 million customers in the UK, making it by far the largest energy firm in terms of customer numbers.