4000 STAFF FACE AXE AT GAS GIANTS
Jobs blow after profits plunge
BRITISH Gas owners Centrica are to axe 4000 jobs following a profits slump.
Most of the jobs will go in the UK over the next three years.
Centrica tried to pin the blame for the cuts on a planned cap on energy bills being brought in by the UK Government.
The company’s British workforce were slashed by 2100 roles on a like-for-like basis last year, taking the total number of job cuts to 5500 since the start of 2016.
Centrica, who also operate in North America and Ireland, said group profits fell 17 per cent to £1.25billion last year.
In that time, British Gas lost 750,000 domestic customers, leaving them with 7.8million.
Group chief executive Iain Conn said: “The combination of political and regulatory intervention in the UK energy market, concerns over the loss of energy customers in the UK and the performance issue in North America have created material uncertainty around Centrica.
“Although we delivered on our financial targets for the year, this resulted in a very poor shareholder experience.
“We regret this deeply, and I am determined to restore shareholder value and confidence.”
Energy firms including Centrica have been facing pressure over the way they treat customers in the UK, with controversy over pricing and the use of standard variable tariffs, which have been deemed poor value for consumers.
Centrica said: “We believe price controls in competitive energy markets are not good for customers.
“Evidence shows that where they have been introduced in other markets, they have led to reduced competition, less choice and prices that tend to cluster around the cap.”