The head of Centrica, the company that owns British Gas, received over £4.7 million in salary and benefits last year despite a decrease in profits. Chief executive Chris O’Shea earned a salary of more than £1 million, supplemented by nearly £3.6 million in bonuses. This comes at a time when many British Gas customers are facing high energy bills.
Mr. O’Shea’s compensation remains substantial even as Centrica’s profits fell to £814 million in the previous year from £1.55 billion in 2024. The decline was partly due to a decrease in profits from its British Gas division, which suffered an £80 million loss due to milder weather, leading customers to reduce their heating usage.
Additionally, more households switched to cheaper fixed-rate energy deals, resulting in a profit decrease in the household supply sector from £269 million in 2024 to £163 million. Despite facing a shareholder revolt at last year’s annual meeting, with nearly 40% opposing the board’s pay arrangements, Mr. O’Shea’s total compensation for 2025 stood at £4.73 million, down from £5.08 million in 2024.
The company’s chair of the boardroom pay setting committee, Carol Arrowsmith, defended the compensation, citing the achieved results and strategic milestones. Mr. O’Shea’s pay is set to increase by 3% to £1.13 million annually from April 1. The report also highlighted that the average pay rises for the 22,000 Centrica employees would range from 3% to 4%.
Despite the challenges faced, Mr. O’Shea emphasized the company’s operational performance and customer growth achievements. British Gas observed a 1% rise in UK and Ireland household customers to 7.96 million, with 7.5 million in the UK, including a boost of 91,000 from acquiring customers of Rebel Energy and Tomato Energy.
British Gas was surpassed by Octopus Energy as the largest household energy supplier in the UK last year. Industry experts predict a 7% reduction in Ofgem’s energy price cap in the upcoming quarterly change, leading to a potential decrease in the annual household dual fuel bill to £1,641. This reduction follows Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ announcement in the previous Budget to cut £150 from the average household bill by scrapping the Energy Company Obligation scheme.