Office of Gas and Electricity Markets
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The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem), working for the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority (GEMA), is the government regulator for the electricity and downstream natural gas markets in Great Britain. It was formed by the merger of the Office of Electricity Regulation (OFFER) and Office of Gas Supply (Ofgas). Its primary duty is to “promote choice and value for all gas and electricity customers".
Its main powers derive from the Gas Act 1986, the Electricity Act 1989, the Competition Act 1998, the Utilities Act 2000, the Enterprise Act 2002 and the Energy Act 2004.
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[edit] Fuel Mix Disclosure guidelines
On December 16, 2005 OFGEM published the "Fuel Mix Disclosure by Electricity Suppliers in Great Britain Guidelines December 2005". Although the new licence condition had been introduced on the 18th March 2005 the actual guidelines for implementation of the fuel mix disclosure requirement were available for the first time.
[edit] Record price increases and lack of gas market supervision by Ofgem
On 30 July 2008, Centrica announced the largest single price increase for an energy utility in modern British history: 35% on the price of gas. The increase was widely condemned and cited as evidence of lack of true competition in both the British and European gas markets; also of a lack of rigor of Ofgem, the UK competition authority. [1]
[edit] See also
- Energywatch (consumer watchdog)
- Electricity market
- Energy policy of the United Kingdom
- Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom
- Energy switching services in the UK
[edit] References
- ^ "British Gas raises prices by 35%". The Guardian. 2008-07-30. http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/jul/30/householdbills.familyfinance.
