UK households are facing a hefty hike in heating prices this winter, as Europe’s energy crisis wreaks havoc on consumers.
Industry regulator Ofgem said Friday set a cap on prices of £3,549, or $4,189, starting on October. The updated price represents an 80% increase from the summer and 178% from last winter.
Ofgem attributed the cap increase to continued wholesale market volatility, which has worsened since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The price of energy has reached record levels driven by an aggressive economic act by the Russian state. They have slowly and deliberately turned off the gas supplies to Europe causing harm to our households, businesses and wider economy,” Ofgem CEO Jonathan Brearley said in a press release. “Ofgem has no choice but to reflect these cost increases in the price cap.”
The new price hike applies to roughly 24 million customers. Consumer energy bills could soar as high as £5,405 in January following the cap increase and £7,263 in April, according to a Bloomberg report citing data from Auxilione.
