UK Energy Bills Set to Rise Again in April, Sparking Concern

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Households across the UK are bracing for another increase in energy costs as the regulator Ofgem has announced that the energy price cap will rise by 6.4% from April. This means the average annual energy bill will climb to £1,849, a figure that has exceeded analysts’ predictions. The government and campaigners have called the hike “worrying” 

 

“You made a promise Energy Bills would come down” Now UK Energy prices set to rise by a whopping 6.4% come April. More business will go bust, more people will be broke & freezing.

🇬🇧 “You made a promise Energy Bills would come down”

Now UK Energy prices set to rise by a whopping 6.4% come April.

More business will go bust, more people will be broke & freezing. pic.twitter.com/WThRKbUhsS

— Concerned Citizen (@BGatesIsaPyscho) February 25, 2025

 

The energy price cap, which is reviewed every three months, limits the amount suppliers can charge per unit of energy. The latest adjustment will affect approximately 22 million households across England, Wales, and Scotland. Ofgem has advised consumers to explore fixed tariffs as a potential way to shield themselves from further increases.  

 

The repeated price hikes have led to widespread frustration, with campaign groups urging the government to step up support for struggling households. Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, emphasized the importance of targeted assistance, particularly for vulnerable consumers.  

 

“Ministers are right to be focused on improving the Warm Home Discount scheme and on energy debt, which continues at record levels because households have to find more even money to use the same amount of energy,” he said.  

 

Caroline Simpson, campaign manager at Warm This Winter, called the increase “devastating” and placed blame on energy companies profiting from the crisis.  

 

She argued that firms such as Centrica and Norwegian-owned Equinor, the UK’s largest gas supplier, are capitalizing on high prices while millions struggle. “It is therefore crucial that the government presses on with plans to fix this broken system and boost our energy security by rapidly increasing our supply of homegrown clean energy to free us from expensive gas and bring down bills for everyone for good,” she said.

 

Tim Jarvis, Ofgem’s markets director general, acknowledged the difficulties consumers face, calling the rise “very unwelcome.” He explained that the regulator was forced to act due to substantial increases in wholesale gas prices.  

 

“This is further evidence, to be honest, that we need to move away from that reliance on international gas and start looking at domestically generated energy,” he told Sky News Breakfast presenter Wilfred Frost.  

 

Jarvis reiterated Ofgem’s full support for the government’s target to transition to clean power by 2030, calling the goal “realistic.”  

 

“It’s a big push. It’s one of the government’s missions. And so we are putting everything we can into it. We need to move away from being a price taker. And I think being able to rely on our own domestically generated, cleaner energy will mean that we’ll see much more stable prices in the future,” he stated.  

 

Looking ahead, Jarvis warned that predicting energy prices for the summer remains uncertain due to market volatility.  

 

“We often see quite minor things significantly changing prices because overall there is a shortage of supply on gas,” he said. “So we are hopeful. But it is very dangerous, I think, to make predictions.”  

 

As millions of households prepare for higher bills, the debate over the UK’s long-term energy strategy continues, with growing calls for a shift away from fossil fuels and towards more affordable, sustainable power sources.

 

Based on a report by Sky News  2025-02-26