SSE has warned that profits from its energy supply business will decline this year as it revealed the loss of 90,000 customers since April.
The energy supply firm, one of the big six, said the number of households using its retail services had fallen from 8.58m to 8.49m in the three months to 30 June, amid increasing competition from a new breed of lower cost independents.
There had been mounting expectation that SSE would copy market leader British Gas and cut its prices. But there was no statement on prices, only a comment that customers had used more gas but less electricity in the first quarter.
Its chief executive, Alistair Phillips-Davies, said the company overall had performed well in the last three months despite the expected reduction in supply profits – the part of the business that sells energy to consumers – for the financial year 2015/16.
“Our financial outlook remains as set out in May and that we are in a good position to respond constructively to the key issues likely to emerge in the rest of this financial year and beyond,” he said.
SSE added that it planned to raise its full-year dividend by at least the RPI rate of inflation.
The company said its renewable energy generating plant had produced 40% more power. Total electricity output from renewable sources including hydroelectric schemes, onshore and offshore wind farms and dedicated biomass plant was up to 2.2 terrawatt hours, compared with 1.62TWh in the first three months of the year.
The company said it was still hopeful of gaining subsidies to move ahead with onshore wind farms of 475 megawatts despite the recent government decision to close the renewable obligation financial aid scheme.
SSE was fined £100,000 after it was found to have overcharged the National Grid for wholesale power earlier this year.
