Energy customers may soon be able to switch providers again to cut their bills, according to predictions from analysts.
Experts at Cornwall Insight say falling wholesale gas prices over the last few months should lead to competition returning to the UK energy market as early as this spring.
Currently, no energy providers are offering fixed-rate deals better than the Energy Price Guarantee.
However, wholesale gas prices have dropped over the last few months which has made it cheaper for energy suppliers.
This, coupled with the Government's Energy Price Guarantee rising to £3,000 and its other support coming to an end in April, suppliers may be once again able to offer lower rates.
Kate Mulvany, senior consultant at Cornwall Insight, said: "There is a good chance that suppliers will be able to offer fixed tariffs that compete with the capped government prices, reviving the benefits of switching suppliers".
"Although such an outcome is subject to wholesale market volatility, early indications are that suppliers may be able to offer competitively priced tariffs within a matter of weeks."
Household switching rates dropped from an average of 496,000 switches per month in 2019 to just 85,000 per month in 2022.
Using the average switching rates from the two years up to October 2019 as a baseline, Kate Mulvany said approximately 5.5million switches that might have been expected did not occur.
Kat said this figure was an indication of how many households may be ready to "mobilise" when suppliers introduce offers that start beating the standard variable rates.
Cornwall Insight predicts the Ofgem price cap could fall to £3,338.07 a year from April - down from its current level of £4,279.
The average household bill will be £3,000 a year from April to the end of June, thanks to the Energy Price Guarantee.
However, after that the price cap level is forecast to fall to £2,361.96 a year from July to the end of September.
This drop would render the Government's Energy Price Guarantee redundant with deals fixed under Ofgem's price cap offering more savings than those set under the Government's.
However, news like this sadly does need to be taken with a grain of salt.
The wholesale energy market can rise as quickly as it can fall, and with the war between Russia and Ukraine still ongoing, things may not fully stabilise just yet.
