Photograph by Shalom Tesciuba
Npower chief executive Paul Massara has dismissed the idea of giving up his bonus in response to public outcry over rocketing energy prices as a “gimmick”.
Massara made the comments in an interview with the BBC’s business programme Hardtalk, earns around £600,000 a year including a £150,000 bonus, claimed that the company was doing all it could to keep costs down and giving up his bonus would have no effect.
He also warned that the UK may face future powercuts unless the government created a “stable environment” for investment and stopped interfering with the market with possible price freezes and other changes.
Massara was asked about the possibility of giving up his bonus after his counterpart at Centrica, Sam Laidlaw, declined his bonus as part of an attempt to restore public faith in the energy industry.
Recent energy price rises of 8-10% from four of the six major energy companies have caused public outrage, with wholesale prices only increasing 1-2% over the last year according to the energy regulator Ofgem.
