U.K. Competition Watchdog Sets Out 30 Reforms for Energy Market
June 24 2016 - 3:27AM
Dow Jones News
By Razak Musah Baba
LONDON--The U.K antitrust body Friday concluded its energy
market investigation setting out a range of reforms to modernize
the market for the benefit of customers.
The Competition and Markets Authority said 30 measures will help
drive down costs by increasing competition between suppliers and
helping more customers switch to better deals, while protecting
those less able to benefit from competition.
As part of the investigation, the CMA said it has found that 70%
of domestic customers of the six largest energy firms are still on
an expensive 'default' standard variable tariff.
The 'big six' energy firms are Centrica PLC (CNA.LN), owner of
British Gas, RWE AG (RWE) which owns RWE npower, SSE PLC (SSE.LN),
E.ON SE (EOAN), EDF Energy and Iberdrola (IBE), which own Scottish
Power.
The CMA said it has found that in aggregate customers have been
paying GBP1.4 billion a year more than they would in a fully
competitive market.
"Competition is working well for some customers in this market -
but nowhere near enough of them. Our measures will help more
customers get a better deal and put in place a modernized energy
market equipped for the future," said Roger Witcomb who led the
energy market investigation.
The CMA is set to send orders and recommendations to the U.K
energy regulator Ofgem and government, while it will shortly
publish a timetable setting out this remedies implementation
process over the next six months.
The CMA said Ofgem will also be given much greater influence
over the working of the market and more powers to enable it to
scrutinize prices and suppliers as well as the impact of
policy.
-Write to Razak Musah Baba at razak.baba@wsj.com; Twitter:
@Raztweet
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 24, 2016 03:12 ET (07:12 GMT)
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