Centrica was savaged by the tabloids in February for the six-fold increase in operating profits at British Gas in 2007. The good news for the board is that they are not going to have to explain such riches next year.

The bad news is that, squeezed by rising wholesale prices for gas and electricity, Centrica is being forced to make both customers and investors unhappy.

Sam Laidlaw, chief executive, told the company’s annual meeting on Monday: “Given the challenges facing us, and the trend of the commodity markets, together with higher effective tax rate, it is clear that we won’t repeat this year the exceptional level of profitability we saw in 2007. ... Read full article