Data for 2011 shows critics of UK utilities' profits wrong - RWE

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's largest six energy suppliers made a profit from less than 8 percent of the energy they produced and sold last year, according to data they are forced to reveal by regulation and which was released on Thursday.

Energy companies are often accused of making hefty profits from selling energy to consumers.

"It is clear that there is a large mismatch between the reality of business seen by those in the energy sector and the received wisdom outside it," Volker Beckers, chief executive of RWE npower, whose company made 119 million pounds last year from production and supply, said in a statement.

Centrica, which owns Britain's largest gas supplier British Gas, gained most out of the big six from producing and selling power and gas. It made 776 million pounds (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) more than it spent in 2011, or a profit on 7.21 percent of revenue from the segment.

Britain's big six, which also include German utilities E.ON and RWE, France's EDF Energy, SSE and Scottish Power, have to report full-year results in a manner that lets consumers compare exactly how much money their suppliers earn from producing and selling energy.

Sector regulator Ofgem passed a rule in 2009 forcing utilities to report profits clearly to increase transparency.

The so-called segmental consolidated statements are usually due by the middle of each year, but changes this year to make statements easier to compare meant 2011 figures were reported for the first time on Thursday by the individual companies.

(Reporting by Karolin Schaps; Editing by Anthony Barker)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/data-2011-shows-critics-uk-utilities-profits-wrong-182405945--finance.html

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