Your electricity could be turned off for 10 minutes this weekend - here’s why

The maximum amount of money an energy firm can charge a customer, also known as an energy price cap, rose by an enormous 54 per cent this month.

As a result, millions of people in the UK witnessed a significant increase in their household bills. And with many Brits already battling the cost of living crisis, hopes that energy bills will decrease by next year have begun to wane.

UK energy prices have been rising for months now, mainly as a result of surging international demand following the end of worldwide COVID-19 restrictions.

The price rises have forced many within the UK to choose between ‘heating and eating’ and news of yet another price hike - in part brought on by the Russian invasion of Ukraine - has only made matters worse.

In February this year, a report published by the bank Investec, announced that household energy bills could hit £3,000 (€3,595) a year in England, Wales and Scotland from October 2022, in part due to the Ukraine crisis.

According to the report, the war in Ukraine is likely to make matters worse for months to come too.

Russia is the world’s largest natural gas exporter and many in Europe are worried about Putin’s reaction to western sanctions.

If Putin were to cut off Europe’s access to Russian gas, wholesale prices would skyrocket. Such a move would be “devastating” and has the potential to “plunge many people into fuel poverty,” says Martin Young, an Investec analyst.

The situation in the UK before the invasion wasn’t great either, with British annual inflation having hit a 30-year-high at 5.4 per cent in December 2021, accompanied by a fall in real wages and rising food costs. Now, with the cost of energy rising too, life for many is looking increasingly difficult.

In recent months, the price of