SCHOOLS
I am writing to inform you of some changes to your energy rates following a mid-year review by suppliers.
It won’t be a surprise to you that a series of major and unexpected events across the world over the last year have led to a swift and unprecedented shift in the availability and pricing of energy in the UK.
While we have been working closely with suppliers and our broker, YPO, the energy market continues to be unpredictable and difficult to navigate even for specialist teams, which is leading to price increases around the country.
We welcome the recent Government announcement and hope to see this making a difference in the coming months, though we are still waiting to hear what this will mean for our flexible contract and as soon as that is determined, our suppliers will provide an
update.
We have recently received estimate prices from suppliers for the forthcoming period and the unit rates you pay for gas and electricity are increasing mid-year due to recent fluctuations in the price of gas and electricity.
The updated costs are more realistic estimate based on factors including winter trades being higher than the benchmark currently being used, alongside other mandatory energy charges.
Bills across October 2022 – March 2023 will be updated and shared with you in the coming weeks to reflect cost increases and any available help from Government caps. Please note that this is separate to the annual reconciliation, which will still take place
in April and account for over and under consumption across the 12-month period.
We are working with our suppliers to understand anticipated bills at a site/meter level to share further information and distribute invoices. If you would prefer to request your site level unit rate cost or ask the suppliers any questions regarding your
individual bill to support budget planning, you can contact them at:
Corona (Gas):
coronaypoteam@coronaenergy.co.uk
Npower:
tony.odonnell@npower.com
Bradford Council holds a flexible contract with Corona Energy and npower Business Solutions (nBS)which means that there is always the risk that market fluctuations will impact the rates that we pay, and budget certainty is never guaranteed.
In previous years we have had a greater level of price certainty due to a stable market environment and as a result this is the first time that our suppliers have applied a mid-year increase in direct response to extraordinary energy market circumstances.
We are working closely with our broker, YPO, and our suppliers to both secure supply and support budget planning over the remainder of the contract to provide as much certainty as is possible within those external uncontrollable conditions.
We appreciate that this news may come as a surprise. For any queries please contact Bradford Council’s energy team on utilities@bradford.gov.uk