LIFE is set to become more expensive from April with energy bills on average rising by £111.

Energy regulator Ofgem has today (Tuesday, 25 February) announced a 6.4 per cent increase of the energy price cap for the period covering April to June 2025.

This follows the announcement last month that water bills in Wales are set to rise by 27 per cent from April and council tax looks set to rise by more than nine per cent for residents in Ceredigion.

Ofgem says the price cap rise is due largely to a spike in wholesale prices of energy.

The price cap – which sets a maximum rate per unit and standing charge that can be billed to customers for their energy use – will rise by £111 for an average household per year, or around £9.25 a month, over the three-month period of the price cap.

For an average household paying by Direct Debit for dual fuel this equates to £1,849 per year. This is 9.4% (£159) higher than this time last year (£1,690) but £531 (22%) lower than at the height of the energy crisis at the start of 2023, when the Energy Price Guarantee was in place.

Jonathan Brearley, CEO of Ofgem, says: “We know that no price rise is ever welcome, and that the cost of energy remains a huge challenge for many households.

“But our reliance on international gas markets leads to volatile wholesale prices, and continues to drive up bills, which is why it’s more important than ever that we’re driving forward investment in a cleaner, homegrown system.

“Energy debts that began during the energy crisis have reached record levels and without intervention will continue to grow. This puts families under huge stress and increases costs for all customers. We’re developing plans that could give households with unmanageable debt the clean slate they need to move forward.

“We welcome the government's support for these plans, and their plans to expand the Warm Home Discount, which will also offer financial help to nearly three million more households that need it most."

In response, National Energy Action Head of Wales Ben Saltmarsh said: “This is the third price cap rise in a row. The cost of energy remains stubbornly high – far beyond pre-crisis levels – and out of reach for hundreds of thousands of the poorest households across Wales.

“People continue to ration their heating, fall into record levels of energy debt, and go without essentials.

“We need enduring solutions to this systemic problem, to help make energy affordable for those most in need, rid them of the burden of debt, and make their homes warmer, healthier places to live.”

In January, Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water announced household customer bills will increase by 27 per cent from April for 2025-26, from £503 to £639 - or £1.75 a day, with bills continuing to rise year-on-year by 42 per cent by 2029-30.