Energy News

Gas bills drop 2% as energy efficiency measures kick in

Wednesday, 28 April 2010

By Garnet Roach - garnet@consumerchoices.co.uk

The average gas bill fell 2% in the first three months of the year according to British Gas, despite the coldest winter in 31 years.

The average gas bill for the eight million homes supplied by British Gas (www.britishgas.co.uk) over the past three months fell to £373, down from £381 at the same time a year ago.

The energy giant said that investment in energy-efficient boilers and insulation had helped keep bills down in spite of the extreme weather.

There had been fears of huge heating bills after the coldest winter in a generation, British Gas managing director, Phil Bentley told The Guardian, especially as energy companies took the opportunity to put their prices up. But while gas consumption did rise, it was nothing like the expected volumes expected.

"It was a very, very cold winter, a 1-in-30 event, which pushed up volumes but less than our models would have suggested, and we have data going back a long time,” he said.

"We are seeing the benefit of underlying energy efficiency measures, with half a million new boilers installed across the UK in the last year alone and more than one million homes putting in better insulation.”

Energy prices have since been cut, but as British Gas reported a 58% increase in profits to nearly £600 in 2009, critics argued that residential prices are still far too high compared to wholesale costs.

Chris Eagle, energy expert at Energychoices.co.uk, said: “Although British Gas claims that the low bills are down to improved energy efficiency in homes, huge numbers of people struggled through this extremely cold winter, and there are concerns that some people simply couldn’t afford to turn the heating up.

“Even if you’re strapped for cash, small measures like lagging your boiler or laying down draught excluders can make a big difference,” he advised.