The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero added regional Energy Price Guarantee rates for January to March 2023 to its published transparency data on 29 November 20221. The update sits on the Energy Price Guarantee: regional rates page, which was first published on 7 October 2022 and applies to England, Scotland and Wales1.
The page carries the Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) unit rates for standard variable tariffs, broken down by region1. The government states that these are the maximum unit rates suppliers can charge for tariffs that are subject to the Ofgem price cap, and that suppliers can also charge less than these rates1. The January to March 2023 figures were the second set added, following the original October to December 2022 rates published with the page's first release1.
The rates are published as separate documents for each quarter. Alongside the January to March 2023 file, the page lists Energy Price Guarantee: regional rates for October to December 2022 and April to June 2023, plus prepayment meter rates for July to September 2023, October to December 2023 and January to March 20241. The prepayment meter documents include standing charges; the earlier standard variable documents are described as regional rates1.
"Rates for January to March 2023 added."
The page notes that the EPG will remain in place until the end of March 20241. A later update on 15 March 2023 recorded that the scheme had been extended until the end of June 2023, with rates for April to June 2023 added at that point1. The regional rates sit alongside the wider bills price cap framework, and the unit rates households actually pay depend on their region, their meter type and their tariff.
Why it matters for households
The EPG set a ceiling on the unit rates suppliers could charge for standard variable tariffs covered by the Ofgem price cap, so the regional tables show the highest per-unit price a household in a given area could face for that quarter1. Because the rates vary by region, two homes using identical amounts of gas and electricity could see different bills depending on where they are1. The published figures also confirm that suppliers were permitted to charge below the capped rates, so a household's actual rate could be lower than the regional maximum1.
For homes on prepayment meters, the later documents add standing charges as well as unit rates, which affects the fixed daily cost of having a supply regardless of how much energy is used1. Households comparing prepayment and pay as you go tariffs against standard credit arrangements are looking at two different sets of published figures. The regional tables also underpin comparisons between fixed, tracker and time-of-use tariffs, since a capped standard variable rate is the benchmark against which other products are often judged.
What happens next
The page records that the EPG was extended until the end of June 2023, with April to June 2023 rates added on 15 March 2023, and that the scheme would remain in place until the end of March 20241. Prepayment meter rates for July to September 2023, October to December 2023 and January to March 2024 were added on 26 May 2023, 25 August 2023 and 24 November 2023 respectively1. No further quarterly rates beyond January to March 2024 are listed on the page1.