As a 30-year veteran in the energy market, I have seen a lot of businesses pay through the roof for their gas and electricity. However, seeing the stark differences in prices paid among some of the largest local authorities was eye-opening to say the least.

When we first sent out Freedom of Information requests last year to more than 300 councils to see what they were paying for their gas and electricity between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2023, transparency was a novel thing. We expected variations due to market uncertainty, ever since the Russian invasion of Ukraine that caused energy prices to hike dramatically. We never expected some of the prices paid to vary between councils so wildly – in some cases variations were almost 200%.