Consumers were left furious today as British Gas’ parent company posted almost £1 billions worth of profit for the first half of this year just one day after announcing huge price rises for their customers.

Customers were told there would be energy price hikes across the board with some people facing an immediate 44 per cent rise in their gas bills. Today, Energywatch, a consumers’ group, concluded: “Prices are going up because £992 million profit in six months isn't enough.”

Centrica, which owns British Gas, made its profit announcement on the same morning that Shell, the world's second biggest oil company, posted a near £4 billion profit in the last quarter while petrol prices continue to soar.

"British Gas customers, still reeling from 35 per cent price hikes, might have expected Centrica to be losing money,” said Adam Scorer, Campaigns Director at Energywatch.

“They will be staggered at the rude health of Centrica's half year profits. Customers will be outraged to learn that while they ponder how to make ends meet Centrica’s shareholders are enjoying an increase in their dividends.”

Energy companies have cited rising global gas and oil prices to explain why they had increased the price of petrol at the pumps and the cost of supplying gas to homes in the UK.

British Gas customers face average increases of 35 per cent on gas and 9 per cent on electricity, pushing up the average bill by £400 to just over £1,300 a year.

The energy price rises have left vulnerable, disabled and elderly consumers unable to afford to use their cars or heat their homes.

A spokeswoman for Age Concern said: “It just seems outrageous to us that companies can come out with such big price rises at the same time as posting huge profits.

“Many older people will find it difficult to understand how such enormous profits are being made whilst they are struggling to afford rocketing energy bills.

"Energy companies say they can’t absorb wholesale price rises, but in light of their profits this will sound hollow to the one in three pensioners likely to be in fuel poverty this winter.”

Age Concern is calling for the Government to legislate and force energy companies to improve social tariffs for low-income families and elderly or vulnerable people. In the absence of legislation, consumer charities are calling for the multinational energy companies to voluntarily put some of their profits towards schemes to end fuel poverty.

A spokesman for the National Consumer Council said: “When people are facing the largest energy prices ever, the energy companies could do more to shield them from the worst effects of rising energy prices.”

Royal Dutch Shell, which runs the Shell garages in the UK, attributed their rise in profits to the soaring price of oil, which touched a record high of $147 earlier this month.

However, consumers are routinely told that the price at the pumps is being forced so high because distributors are being forced to pay more for the oil they convert into petrol.

TransAction 2007, the fuel protest group responsible for blockades in London earlier this summer, agrees that the Government should step in to limit the profits of energy companies.

“There’s another example that everyone is profiting out of the oil price surge,” said Peter Carroll, a spokesman for TransAction. “The Government should ruthlessly tax hedge funds and companies speculating in oil. They should stop oil companies being master of exploitation, production, distribution and retail.”

Last weekend, Gordon Brown rejected the demands of union leaders and Labour backbenchers, who called for a windfall tax on energy companies.

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