UK energy price rises imminent after latest collapse of supplier

There will likely be "two or three" price rises for energy customers in the United Kingdom in the near future according to the chief executive of Scottish Power, one of Britain's leading providers in the sector.

Following the reported collapse of another UK supplier this week, Bulb Energy, Scottish Power head Keith Anderson told BBC Radio 4's Today program on Tuesday that energy price caps will likely increase from April.

"We're looking at a future, it's sad to say, of two to three price rises coming up because of the state of that market," he said.

"That can't go on, that is not sustainable. We need to get to a place where people are paying the true cost of supplying gas and electricity, and the people we should be protecting are the vulnerable customers and those in energy poverty."

The Financial Times noted the UK's regulatory price caps for customers have forced providers to bear the cost, and that changes to the cap, in order to stabilize the market, look to be needed urgently.

Bulb Energy was put into administration on Monday, becoming the 23rd and largest UK energy company to face difficulties following the rise in gas prices this year.

The FT said Bulb will now become the first energy company put into "special administration", and will be run by the government through the regulator Ofgem, which is a policy used when no other company is found to take over a struggling supplier's customers.

The BBC said that Bulb, which is the UK's seventh biggest energy company with 1,000 staff and supplies gas and electricity to 1.7 million homes, has been wrestling with its finances for several weeks. It said nearly four million customers have now been affected by the collapse of companies in the sector.

"The sad thing about the way the market is structured right now is it's in no one's interest to take them on, to pay money for them. That's why Ofgem has put them into the special administration, because with these customers right now comes a huge bill," said Anderson.

He said Bulb's fall into administration should "focus minds on how the market operates" and on "why so many companies have been allowed to operate so recklessly for so long".

The Daily Telegraph reported on Tuesday that wholesale gas prices were rising again after the United States imposed fresh sanctions that target Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline, an action that the Kremlin branded "illegal".

The US is concerned the project could give Russia added influence in Europe. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the penalties target a Russian-linked shipping company and vessel.