British energy regulator Ofgem has said it will raise the price cap for average household energy bills by almost 21%, to £4,279 ($5,172) per year fron January to the end of March 2023.

The price cap, which is adjusted from quarter to quarter, will rise by £730 for the first quarter of 2023. The hike occurred just before the government’s freeze at £2,500 until April.

The regulator noted, “There is no immediate action for consumers to take as a result of today’s announcement.”

This means that the emergency intervention by London to lower energy bills for families will save the average household roughly £1,779 per year, compared to what would have been paid without the cap.

The price guarantees, back by the UK government, look to blunt the effects of the energy crisis being produced by the war in Ukraine and Russian sanctions, as Britain appears to be heading into a prolonged recession.

However critics point out that even with the price cap of £2,500 families will still be paying almost twice the amount they paid in 2021. One year ago, under Ofgen’s price cap, household bills were limited to £1,277 a year.

Analysts expect the price cap will rise to an average of £3,000 per year from April 1 until the end of March 2024.

Analysts at Cornwall Insight estimate the Energy Price Cap will have a cost to the government of up to £42 billion. Analysts at the consultancy predict the Ofgem cap will fall to £3,921 from April and then on to about £3,400 for the last six months of 2023.