SSE Fined £9.8m for Overcharging During Power Down Periods

Energy producer SSE has been fined £9.8m by energy regulator Ofgem for breaching its generation licence by charging too much money to power down during times when electricity infrastructure can't take all the traffic on the system.

SSE avoided a steeper fine by settling the investigation early.

The company made the amount it charged to reduce output "significantly more expensive" at a hydropower station in Foyers, Scotland, to increase profit and bring prices in line with what SSE thought other pumped storage operators were charging.

The fine is only a fraction of the company's profits.

All electricity customers who use power from the national grid ultimately paid the price for the increase.