Bills set to rise despite wholesale costs falling

HOUSEHOLD energy bills are set to rise by around 1% in October despite lower wholesale costs, according to new forecasts.

- JOSIE CLARKE

The typical household energy bill is expected to rise by £17 to £1,737 per year when regulator Ofgem’s new price cap comes into force, experts at Cornwall Insight have predicted.

Ofgem, which sets the limit on what energy companies can charge customers, is set to confirm its latest price cap on August 27.

Cornwall Insight’s latest prediction is a turnaround from its previous forecast in July that bills would drop by 1% from the current £1,720 in October due to easing Middle East tensions.

Cornwall said its forecast reflected changes its assumed Ofgem would be introducing in the upcoming cap period, including the expansion of the Warm Home Discount scheme for vulnerable households that would add around £15 to a typical bill, while also providing £150 in support to 2.7 million additional people.