A massive energy bill rise of £194 could be on the way for British Gas, OVO, EDF, EOn Next, and Octopus Energy customers. The energy price is predicted to rise from £1,568 to £1,762 in October. This rise in energy costs could be due to the rising tensions in the Ukraine/Russia conflict.
Asset management firm Columbia Threadneedle Investments has predicted this rise and attributed the potential rise in energy costs to concerns over the safety of Ukraine gas storage and transhipment facilities [storage warehouses], both vital resources for Europe. Their gas storage facilities are some of the largest in Europe and can hold an impressive 31 billion cubic meters of gas.
Steven Bell, Chief Economist of Columbia, stated:
There are fears that the storage and transhipment facilities in Ukraine of gas are going to come under threat”
The safety concerns have instigated “quite a big move in a few weeks” that has changed Columbia’s assessment of the price cap from below £1,500 to £1,762. He suggests that the increase may not seem big, but it is 19% higher than what may have been likely weeks before, and it is 12% higher than the recent price cap we are currently living in.
He also added:
If you are looking for a reason why Rishi Sunak suprised us all by calling an early election instead of November, I think this is it.“
Cornwall Insight also revised its forecast for the default tariff cap for October to December this year, predicting that duel fuel consumers would face an annual price cap of £1,723.
Applying for Help with Rising Energy Costs
The rise of energy costs is a persistent problem in this day and age, a problem that doesn’t seem to be going anywhere any time soon. The new Labour government have promised the arrival of Great British Energy, a brand new publicly owned energy company. Right now there is help available via government-backed grants.
To help ease the impact of rising energy bills, the government has help available through schemes like the ECO4 scheme, Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS), Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), and the Home Upgrade Grant (HUG).
