Leeds City Council's energy bills could increase by £9m this year, report shows

It follows the recent rocketing electricity and gas prices, which resulted in many consumers seeing their own energy bills increase by more than 50 per cent, following the rising of the price cap last month.

It now looks as though Leeds City Council also expects to see an increase in its own gas and electric bills by just under £9m next year.

According to a document set to go before council bosses this week, the authority currently spends roughly £23.5m a year on energy costs, which include gas and electricity bills for public buildings and many of the district's schools.

However,based on currently available prices, the council now estimates its bill for the 2022/23 financial year could be as high as £32.4m - almost £9m more than the previous year.

The document, which is set to go before the council's decision-making executive board, says the council managed to avoid the bulk of the price increases by purchasing its energy in advance.

But it conceded that the future was very much uncertain when it came to energy prices.

The report stated: "The council (has) already hedged the majority of energy for this last year and into next year.

"Nevertheless, the market increases have still produced substantial budget pressures, and beyond this time our level of forward purchases becomes progressively less, and the council’s exposure to high energy prices increases."

The report concludes: "Due to the volatile nature of energy prices and their link to global political, economic and other factors, energy purchasing is inherently risky and carries the potential for judgements and decisions which, with the benefit of hindsight, prove to have been costly.

"The council’s strategy involves buying energy progressively over a range of time periods in order to balance the risk, with the timing of purchases informed by market insights and advice provided by the council’s energy supplier via its professional trading desk."

The report will be discussed by Leeds City Council's Executive Board on Wednesday, March 16.