“Despite accusations that companies are squirrelling away profits in their generation segments, Ofgem, the OFT and the CMA’s most recent analysis suggests that “the generation sector is covering its cost of capital but no more.”

Transfer pricing and its variants require the services of forensic accountants to uncover. I rather doubt that the UK’s (non)regulator and the other acronyms were either able to access for example, EdF’s UK accounts or were able to deploy said forensics – so of course all would look in order – after all that’s what auditors are for – to make sure the i’s are dotted t’s crossed etc.

In the case of “barriers to entry” it is a pity the authors did not mention the cost of acquiring an electricity license (£500k++?) this deters smaller suppliers quite apart from the cost of acquiring customers (we know we waste 50% of the marketing budget we just don’t know which 50% etc). At least in Germany the stadtwerke to some extent have the muscle to keep the usual suspects honest. There is no equivalent in the UK and no prospect of them.

As far as the final para is concerned “a return to competition in British energy markets” – I assume this was where the writers uploaded their irony sub-routine? There never was “competition” in UK energy markets and given the actions on the UK’s (non)regulator there never will be.