Energy supplier SSE fined £2m for pushing up electricity prices
Failure to publish inside information about future availability of company’s generation capacity prompts Ofgem fine
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Britain's energy regulator has fined SSE more than £2 million for a 2016 blunder which is likely to have pushed up wholesale electricity costs.
Ofgem said it would send a “strong message” to energy producers that they must share timely information with others on the market.
In February 2016, SSE said it was going to shut three out of four units at Fiddler's Ferry, a coal-fired power plant in Cheshire with the capacity to provide 3 per cent of Britain's peak electricity needs.
But a little over a week before the 1 April closing date the electricity giant signed a deal with National Grid that would keep the site online.
However, it was not until the day before the units had been meant to shut down that SSE told the market.
This meant that, for four trading days, traders were unaware there was going to be a lot more electricity in the system the following week than they were expecting.
“Market participants were likely to have paid higher prices than they needed to, and risked undermining confidence in the wholesale electricity market,” said Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley.
It is unclear whether these costs were passed on to British households.
Martin Pibworth, SSE's energy director, said his employer had acted in “good faith” - a conclusion Ofgem said it had not found any evidence to counter.
He added that SSE's interpretation of the rules, which were then fairly recent, had been different to that of Ofgem, and called for more clarity.
“We subsequently understood that Ofgem's interpretation required disclosure to the market at an earlier stage. We admit that our approach was not in line with this requirement,” he said.
“SSE did not benefit from disclosing only once the contract was signed and remains committed to clear and transparent rules for all market participants. We will be pressing regulatory authorities for additional guidance for market participants going forward.”
Mr Brearley added: “This fine sends a strong message to market participants that they must be familiar with, and keep to, their obligations.”
The fine concerns SSE's generation arm, and not the electricity supplier which was bought by Ovo Energy at the start of this year.
Press Association
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments