Cold weather raises gas use by 18%
The cold weather in the first four months of 2013 has meant that gas use in the UK was 18pc higher than that of the same period in 2012, according to British Gas. Electricity use was also reported to be higher, with a rise of 3pc.
According to the Met Office, the average temperature throughout the winter months was colder than that of 2012, while the month of March had the second coldest average temperature ever recorded.
British Gas was one of the ‘big six’ gas and electricity providers to raise household energy prices towards the end of 2012, and this coupled with a cooler winter will see the company benefit hugely. However British Gas has explained that this could benefit the consumer in the long term.
Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, say that they have “performed well” so far this year, and the strong performance enables the company to “continue to invest in customer service and price competitiveness”.
The company added: “Any benefit arising from the exceptionally cold weather will be used to maintain our price competitiveness. We will use that (cold weather benefit) to effectively hold prices for as long as possible”.
This should mean that another price increase is some way off, and for consumers who are struggling with the costs of monthly household bills, this will be encouraging news.
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