Utilities report back with large profits

01 June 2006

Many of the large utilities have benefited from high energy prices, and if it continues the regulator may ave to bare his teeth.

Scottish and Southern, International Power and United Utilities have all posted increased profits this is interesting when one considers the price increases seen in the UK and the fact that many of the supply side of the business was supposedly losing money from rising prices. There is no doubt that the generators have had some phenomenal years and this is unlikely to stop with emissions pushing prices higher.

Those with overall low emitting portfolios will benefit, and this is proving itself already with this spate of results. In fact both RWE SSE and IPR are very keen to build clean coal technology plant, and this is something that they have been looking at on existing sites, which takes some of the planning issues out of equation.

If emissions prices continue to rise, and if power prices stay where they are at the moment the role of the regulator will have to get stronger.


Carbon  Generation  Regulation  Low carbon technology 

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