The owner of British Gas reported runaway profits on Thursday as high energy costs and changes in government rules brought in almost £1 billion for parent company Centrica.
Results for the first half of the year showed British Gas profits rising sharply from £98 million ($127.3 million) to £969 million, an increase of 889 per cent.
Centrica said about £500 million of this related to changes in a UK price cap, which allowed suppliers to recoup previously lost costs.
High prices "naturally also drove" higher margins but the vast profits were "mainly due to one-off factors", it said.
The company's shares were up 5 per cent in early trading.
Chief executive Chris O'Shea said the company would invest profits in the energy transition, amid anger at the bumper profits.
"Our robust balance sheet has allowed us to invest heavily in the UK and Ireland's energy security and will make sure that our customers have cleaner energy at the right price," he said.
"Today's results allow us to increase our customer support package to more than £100 million and the new green investment strategy we've announced will see us invest several billion pounds in energy transition, creating thousands of new well-paid jobs."
Shell separately said it made $5.1 billion in the second quarter, in what it called a strong performance despite a drop since the January to March period.
It raised dividends for shareholders by 15 per cent despite what chief executive Wael Sawan said were lower commodity prices and seasonally lower trading.
The announcements come with inflation in the UK at 9.5 per cent and voter frustration high about the cost of living. Energy prices have been high for more than a year amid a supply squeeze exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"Good luck to these companies if they make investments and make profits but these are unearned, unexpected profits," Labour's shadow climate minister Ed Miliband told BBC Breakfast.
"The energy companies should be made to pay their fair share so we can tackle the cost-of-living crisis."
Key features of new policy
Pupils to learn coding and other vocational skills from Grade 6
Exams to test critical thinking and application of knowledge
A new National Assessment Centre, PARAKH (Performance, Assessment, Review and Analysis for Holistic Development) will form the standard for schools
Schools to implement online system to encouraging transparency and accountability
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
RESULT
Aston Villa 1
Samatta (41')
Manchester City 2
Aguero (20')
Rodri (30')
THE SPECS – Honda CR-V Touring AWD
Engine: 2.4-litre 4-cylinder
Power: 184hp at 6,400rpm
Torque: 244Nm at 3,900rpm
Transmission: Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT)
0-100kmh in 9.4 seconds
Top speed: 202kmh
Fuel consumption: 6.8L/100km
Price: From Dh122,900
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
UAE Premiership
Results
Dubai Exiles 24-28 Jebel Ali Dragons
Abu Dhabi Harlequins 43-27 Dubai Hurricanes
Final
Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Jebel Ali Dragons, Friday, March 29, 5pm at The Sevens, Dubai
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
