[1andrew1]

Great, free-to-read article here on the mess in the energy market. The final paragraphs in particular.

Before the energy price cap, companies used every tactic to reel people in with teaser rates and then exploit their inertia, generating high margins. After the price cap was introduced to solve that problem, companies tied themselves to the spot market to offer the cheapest deals. They knew that if things went well, they would make good money and if prices rose, they would go bust with the rest of the sector — or the government would pick up the tab. Heads, we win; tails, you lose.

Ofgem’s failure to address this lack of resilience in the industry it regulates is identical to financial services regulatory failure before 2008-09. That it has happened so soon after the financial crisis should be a national scandal. Had ministers acted on the market reviews they commissioned, such as Sir Dieter Helm’s 2017 cost of energy review, many of these problems could have been avoided. But his report, like so many others, was shelved.

The UK energy crisis of 2022 is a problem without a silver bullet solution. Households will feel financial pain for years. The industry and regulator will need another shake up. It is quite some mess.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/spot...?ocid=msedgntp