British Gas owner Centrica sees profits soar as energy bills rise
British Gas owner Centrica has posted huge profits after energy prices soared last year.
Centrica's full-year profits hit £3.3bn for 2022, more than triple the £948m it made the year before.
Energy firms have seen record earnings since oil and gas prices jumped following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The figures come after British Gas was criticised over its use of debt agents to force-fit prepayment meters in the homes of vulnerable customers.
Pressure has been heaped on energy firms to pay more tax in the UK as a result of their large profit margins, with households being hit with higher electricity and gas bills.
The majority of Centrica's bumper profits came from its nuclear and oil and gas business, rather than from the British Gas energy supply business, which contributed £72m out of the £3.3bn profit. The overall profit figure also included the impact of selling its Spirit Energy oil and gas business in May.
Centrica said British Gas Energy profits had decreased by 39% compared to 2021's levels, which was largely down to "voluntary donations made to support customers" and the repayment of furlough funds it received during the height of Covid.
The company said it paid about £1bn in tax relating to its 2022 profits. Some of that was as a result of the windfall tax - called the Energy Profits Levy - which was introduced by the government last year to recoup some of the "extraordinary" earnings made by firms and help fund lower gas and electricity bills for households.
But Centrica said it would extend its share buyback scheme, the money it returns to its shareholders, to £300m and also pay out a full-year dividend of 3p a share.
'Failing consumers'
The release of Centrica's profits sparked criticism from trade unions, campaigners and opposition politicians.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said Centrica had been "coining it in from our massive energy bills while sending bailiffs to prey on vulnerable consumers the length and breadth of the country".
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said that the British energy market was "broken" and called for energy retail companies to be brought into public ownership.Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, added the energy market was "failing consumers and is in desperate need of reform".
Shadow climate secretary Ed Miliband hit out at the government and promised that Labour would introduce a "proper" windfall tax on energy companies to "pay their fair share".
Centrica chief executive Chris O'Shea said the energy crisis and cost of living pressures had "created a challenging environment for customers and communities". He said the company had "been able to provide much needed stability and support" and had "invested £75m in supporting our energy customers in 2022".
The company has been heavily criticised in recent weeks, after it was revealed debt agents working for British Gas, the UK's largest electricity and gas supplier, had broken into the homes of vulnerable people behind on bills to force-fit prepayment meters.
The revelations resulted in Ofgem, the energy watchdog, asking all suppliers to suspend forced pre-payment meter installations, telling firms to get their "house in order".
Centrica said it was "extremely disappointed by the allegations" surrounding one of its contractors Avarto Financial Solutions and "their approach to pre-payment customers".
"We immediately took action to address this and are completing a thorough independent investigation," it added.
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