UK in talks with energy companies over soaring prices

The United Kingdom’s business minister Kwasi Kwarteng said that the government is working with the energy industry to manage the fallout from the increasing gas prices, as several energy suppliers have shut down plants or went out of business altogether.

“I was reassured that security of supply was not a cause for immediate concern within the industry,” he said in a tweet.

Kwarteng said that he had been reassured that the security of gas supply was not a cause for immediate concern but he would work with providers to "manage the wider implications of the global gas price increase, as fears are growing that more energy providers and food producers would be unable to operate at such high costs

Kwarteng held emergency talks with executives from National Grid Centrica, EDF and Ofgem on Saturday. He will hold further discussions with industry figures on Sunday and Monday.

Ofgem has already warned that Britain is likely to face high energy prices for the rest of the year. In an interview with the BBC, Dermot Nolan, former head of Ofgem, said he expected prices to stay high for up to four months and it was not clear what the government could do to affect the current market rates.