British Gas profits bonanza tells you energy price cap has failed

The regulator has proposed a permanent change in the price cap formula that could increase the proportion of energy bills notionally allocated as profit. Photograph: Mark Dyball Picture Library/Alamy

Outraged by the 889% increase in profits at British Gas? It’s an entirely reasonable view: an operating profit of £969m is one hell of a sum in a six-month period for a regulated business supplying the commodity products of gas and electricity.

But complaints, in the first instance, should be directed towards the regulator Ofgem. The bonanza at British Gas is intended. Not to the precise million, obviously, but a temporary surge in profitability for the whole sector has been blessed from above. EDF Energy and Scottish Power also demonstrated on Thursday that they coined it in the first half of 2023 in their retail operations.