cent from May 29, as declared by parent Centrica on Tuesday.
Rises to electricity and gas charges will add 60 pounds ($85) to yearly bills for 4.1 million customers on the standard variable tariff (SVT), boosting them to an average of 1,161 pounds, according to the company.
On March 31, British Gas removed its SVT default tariff for new customers and is trying to move customers off SVTs and on to fixed tariffs. New customers will not be offered SVTs by the company.
Centrica stated that the hike in prices is mainly due to increasing wholesale and policy costs. Similar pressures were mentioned by Ofgem when they raised the prepayment meter limit by merely over 57 pounds on 1st April.
Centrica declared that the price rise was partly necessary because of government policy costs such as the smart meter roll-out and schemes to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
Article Source: http://www.energymarketprice.com/energy-news/british-gas-will-increase-energy-prices-by-5-5