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Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng is to hold meetings with energy bosses today to address rapidly rising gas and electricity prices.
Mr Kwarteng will meet with the bosses of major energy suppliers who are likely to ask the government for tax cuts and the relaxation of green levies.
Last week, the industry’s trade body Energy UK warned bills could increase by a further 50% without government intervention.
And one energy boss has predicted the rise in wholesale gas prices will equate to “an enormous crisis for 2022”.
Ovo’s boss Stephen Fitzpatrick said the government must show more “urgency” in tackling the situation.
Mr Fitzpatrick told the BBC there has been “more than 30 bankruptcies in the sector” with “millions of customers forced to change supplier” at a cost of “more than £4bn”.
“We haven’t seen any action from the government or from the regulator. There’s an acceptance that there’s a problem, but nowhere near enough urgency to find a solution,” he said.
The government has maintained that it wants to ensure that consumers are protected.
It is believed Mr Kwarteng will discuss how to build a more resilient retail energy market with the chief executives of major suppliers on Monday.
More than two dozen energy suppliers have collapsed since September
More than 26 energy suppliers have gone bust since prices started to spike in September. Nearly four million customers have been affected.
Those companies to have collapsed included Bulb, the UK’s seventh biggest energy supplier with 1.7 million customers.
Since then, prices have risen from 54p per therm of gas to £4.50.
Wholesale prices continue to climb steeply and fears of extortionate household bills in the New Year are…
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Source : skynews
