Scottish Power’s profits have slumped by almost 80% after the big six energy supplier lost about 165,000 customers in the past year.
The supplier, owned by the Spanish utility company Iberdrola, blamed mild winter weather and the government’s energy price cap for the sharp drop in profits.
Scottish Power reported profits of £37.4m for the first nine months of the year, down from £170m in the same period last year when freezing weather, brought by the “beast from the east” storm, increased the amount of gas and electricity used in homes.
Scottish Power said it had sold 10% less electricity and 8% less gas this year, in part because the weather had been milder but also due to a fall in customer numbers from 4.78 million this time last year to 4.62 million.