Last of 'big six' energy firms finally raises prices after freezing bills - Daly Mail 20th March 2008

Energy price hike: Scottish & Southern

Scottish & Southern Energy today became the last of the UK's six main suppliers to increase fuel bills as it hit customers with double-digit price hikes.

The group confirmed it would raise tariffs by an average of 14.2 per cent for electricity and 15.8 per cent for gas from April 1.

Scottish & Southern - which has 8.5 million customers - said the move came as it has faced 'stubbornly high' wholesale energy costs.

Households have been hit by a swathe of energy price increases this year as suppliers seek to pass on the wholesale rises.

In January, Npower became the first of the "big six" to hike costs, and was soon followed by EDF and British Gas, which announced tariff rises in the same month.

Scottish & Southern had pledged to freeze its energy prices until the end of March, but said today that it was forced into the decision as wholesale electricity costs have soared 90 per cent and gas by 100 per cent since March last year.

Alistair Phillips-Davies, energy supply director of Scottish & Southern, told the group's customers that he was "sorry". He said: "Energy supply in the UK is changing dramatically, with companies having to operate in volatile markets, which reflect depletion of North Sea oil and gas fields, soaring global demand for all types of energy and over 100 US dollars a barrel for oil.
"These pressures are compounded by the rising transmission, distribution and environmental costs, which suppliers have to meet.
"You cannot resist indefinitely the impact of these issues and I am sorry that all of this has culminated in the price rises we are announcing today."

Scottish & Southern's increases will see dual fuel standard tariffs rise to £1,006 a year.
The news came as the industry is also facing an investigation by regulator Ofgem, which last month announced an inquiry into the UK's gas and electricity markets.

The industry has come under heavy fire for increasing prices after raking in huge profits.
In the year to March 2007, Scottish & Southern made adjusted pre-tax profits of £1.08 billion, 24 per cent up on the previous year.

But the group said it would stick by its promise to be "the last, or one of the last" of the major suppliers to increase prices and the "first, or one of the first" to cut bills.

It also published a code of practice for helping vulnerable customers in line with Government policy to help ease the burden on those in "fuel poverty".

The Chancellor announced plans in last week's Budget to curb fuel poverty by insisting energy companies triple spending on social tariffs and change the treatment of the five million customers using pre-payment meters.