The head of the company that owns British Gas, Centrica, received over £4.7 million in salary and benefits last year despite a decline in profits. Chief executive Chris O’Shea’s salary of more than £1 million was supplemented by nearly £3.6 million in bonuses. This comes as many British Gas customers are facing high energy bills.
Mr. O’Shea’s earnings contrast with Centrica’s reduced underlying profits of £814 million in 2025, down from £1.55 billion in 2024. Factors contributing to this decline include warmer weather impacting the British Gas arm, resulting in a loss of £80 million due to reduced heating usage by customers.
Although the household supply sector of the business still generated profits of £163 million, this was a decrease from £269 million in 2024 as more customers switched to cheaper fixed tariff agreements. Mr. O’Shea’s total remuneration for 2025 stood at £4.73 million, down from £5.08 million in 2024.
Despite facing shareholder opposition at the previous annual general meeting, where nearly 40% voted against pay plans, Mr. O’Shea’s bonuses have remained substantial. His pay is set to rise by 3% to £1.13 million annually from April 1, aligning with the company’s workforce receiving average pay increases of 3% to 4%.
The ratio of Mr. O’Shea’s pay compared to the average employee at Centrica was 71:1 last year. The chair of Centrica’s pay committee, Carol Arrowsmith, acknowledged the company’s achievements in the past year. In response to the results, Mr. O’Shea highlighted the challenging environment but emphasized the company’s operational performance and customer growth.
British Gas reported a 1% increase in UK and Ireland household customers to 7.96 million, with 7.5 million in the UK. However, this growth was partly due to acquiring customers from failed suppliers Rebel Energy and Tomato Energy. British Gas was surpassed by Octopus Energy as the largest household energy supplier in the UK.
Industry experts predict a 7% reduction in Ofgem’s energy price cap, reducing costs for a typical dual fuel household by £117 annually. This follows Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ announcement in the Budget to cut £150 from average household bills by eliminating the Energy Company Obligation scheme.
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