We work hard to keep our prices as fair as possible. Yes, we have to make money. We’re a business. But of the total cost of energy to our customer base, only a small proportion is profit. And it is the growth of other parts of the bill that have been the driving force behind price increases in recent years.
We make less than £2 a week on an average dual fuel energy bill. We think it’s a fair amount to make – and while it can go up and down depending on things like the weather in any given year, we consistently aim for an average profit margin of around 5% in energy supply because we think this is a fair and sustainable level. And, as the illustration overleaf shows, over the past four years it has averaged just that.
What’s more, as a UK company this profit helps us to improve our services, invest in modernising the energy system in the UK, employ thousands of people and pay tax to the UK Government.
The cost of supplying energy to you has been rising, but whatever happens to costs in the future, we will continue to do all we can to keep our prices as low as possible and to target a fair and sustainable level of profit.
Have a look at the illustration below for more information on what costs make up energy bills.
We’d like you to understand how the cost of an energy bill is made up. The chart shows you the costs involved in supplying electricity and gas, including the profit we earn doing so. The figures are based on an average of SSE’s figures for the last four financial years ending March 2013.*
* Illustration based on information from SSE’s Consolidated Segmental Statements published from 2010-2013 which are available on our website. Average costs per energy bill weighted to reflect the proportionality of our customer base (59% electricity, 41% gas). Costs will vary depending on fuel(s), region and tariff.