SSE profits up 13.9% as price hike delay woos customers

Pre-tax profits at Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) rose 13.9 per cent to £1.23 billion in the last year.

The rise in profits came as the firm delayed its winter price hikes to March and brought in 700,000 new customers – making it the UK's second largest energy supplier.

SSE now supplies 8.45 million gas and electricity customers.

The energy provider was the last firm to raise its prices after winter – increasing gas and electricity prices by 14.2 per cent and 15.8 per cent respectively in March.

Sir Robert Smith, SSE chairman, said the good results came in "a challenging year for the sector in which many key questions were asked about the sustainability, reliability and affordability of energy".

Last year SSE purchased the Irish firm wind-farm business Airtricity, which it claims is part of its plans to secure future energy supplies and tackle climate change.

The high profits come after last week's warning from the energy watchdog that competition in the gas and electricity markets was limited.

Allan Asher, chief executive of Energywatch, told MPs it was a myth there was competition in the energy markets.

He told the Commons business and enterprise committee: "There is a myth that there is vigorous price competition between [energy suppliers].

"For the main product they most actively sell - direct debit for dual fuel, gas and electricity - the price difference between the cheapest and most expensive is £30 a year; it's just a few pence a week."

He went on to call for an investigation into the lack of competition among the six energy competitions.

Daniel Barnes