British Gas owner has scrapped an events day for investors due to the recent surge in gas prices.
The Capital Markets Event was planned for 16 November, but chief executive Chris O-Shea said that due to the current unprecedented commodity price environment it was focused on looking after its residential and business customers,
“In this whilst working as part of wider industry efforts in the UK to support the customers of failed suppliers and drive the regulatory reforms which are urgently required to make sure this situation never recurs.
“Unfortunately, that has meant taking the decision to postpone our planned Capital Markets Event in November,” he added.
Centrica added that its performance since the interim results in July has been in line with expectations and as a responsible energy supplier built on a sustainable model, the Group is well hedged for the coming winter and beyond.
The balance sheet remains strong and the Group’s transformation remains on track, it added.
Twelve independent providers have gone out of business due to the rocketing price of wholesale gas, which at one point had risen 600% this year, with the big suppliers obliged to take on their customers and keep them switched on.
So far that has meant 1.72mln people changing their supplier, which involves a transition cost to the new provider.
Last month, analysts estimated has taken on around 450,000 new customers due to the failure of the existing supplier with another 200,000 also forecast to go to British Gas as other suppliers fail.
In the short term there will be a cost as people move back to default tariffs, said the brokers.
