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Energy secretary Chris Huhne has given his backing for proposals to simplify electricity and gas tariffs. “Consumers deserve the best possible deal, which means rough and tough competition in the marketplace,” he said. The ‘Big Six’ suppliers in Britain have been ordered to reform their pricing and stop confusing customers, or face a formal referral to the Competition Commission. The firms have just two months to accept wide-ranging reforms, said regulator Ofgem.

The nuclear crisis in Japan will force up UK gas prices and have a knock-on effect on energy bills, say experts. The Fukushima nuclear power plant was among 11 of Japan’s reactors to be shut down in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami disasters, increasing demand for liquefied natural gas. Adam Forsyth, analyst at Matrix Group, said: “If the price rises and is consistently at a high level then it has to come through to people’s gas bills eventually.”

Future oil drilling in the North Sea was dealt a blow after a high court judge said he would hear a legal challenge from campaigners Greenpeace over deep-water licences for drilling off the Scottish coast. This could see many projects blocked and existing licences quashed. It could put more pressure on the price of oil, which recently hit $120 a barrel during the Middle East crisis.

Your heating bills could be costing £100s more per year than they need to be, says the UK energy regulator. Ofgem has released a series of video guides aimed at raising awareness of customers’ rights. They include dealing with doorstep sales people, and debt and disconnection.

The coalition have today (Wednesday, December 8) introduced to parliament a bill to provide homeowners with four-figure loans to make their properties more energy-efficient. The energy security and green economy bill is expected to make power companies legally obliged to slash greenhouse gas emissions in their customers’ homes. Companies could be offering incentives, such as foreign holidays, for customers to take out ‘green deal’ loans.

Oil firms have shut down production due to the uprisings in Libya. The country usually produces 1.6 million barrels a day, making it Africa’s third largest producer after Nigeria and Angola. Most of this oil is being exported to Europe. Wintershall, the oil arm of German chemical group BASF, said it was cutting its 100,000 barrels a day output. It is the first time that a significant amount of production has been shut down since the tension started.

A leading authority on public health says the system for calculating most domestic fuel bills in the UK is contributing to thousands of deaths each winter. The UK Public Health Association (UKPHA) says two-tier tariffs, where the first units cost more, hit the poorest hardest. UKPHA chairman Professor John Ashton says winter death rates are much higher in Britain than in Scandinavia.

Minister for energy Charles Hendry is urging the Office of Fair Trading to bring forward its review into the off-grid energy market. He said: “Underlying many of the complaints are concerns about the challenges of supplying oil and gas to rural communities and whether the current market structure provides the reassurance that consumers can get fuels for heating when needed at a price they can afford.” Many consumers during the winter complained of oil shortages.

Ofgem is considering forcing electricity and gas suppliers to offer a basic tariff to protect customers against soaring bills. It is one of the options being considered as part of the regulator’s investigation of the energy market. It is understood that Ofgem has not yet approached companies about the measure.

Wholesale gas prices have risen dramatically over the last year, and are up 35 per cent since March 2010. It was only a matter of time before this increase would be passed on to retail prices. It has come as no surprise that supplier E.ON has joined four other energy companies in putting up prices and heaping more winter misery on suffering consumers. All suppliers have cited wholesale costs as the reason behind the price hikes.

A price comparison website has warned consumers they will face a 20 per cent rise in fuel bills this winter. Cold weather and rising gas prices are expected to push the average quarterly fuel bill up to a record £658.

Global markets were thrown into turmoil as a result of tensions in Middle East countries where vast stocks of oil are kept. The rising price of oil, which could fuel further rises in already high inflation rates and hit corporate profits, affected stock markets. At the beginning of the week US shares, Asian stocks and European shares all closed heavily down.