As energy prices surge, FOREIGN energy giants accused of treating UK like Treasure Island

German owned N-Power is rushing through immediate rises of up to 27.1per cent.

The average family buying both gas and electricity from the company will find the annual bill soaring above £1,000. Charities for the elderly fear the sudden increase will put many lives at risk.

The decision by Npower, part of German utility powerhouse RWE, is expected to be followed by other suppliers, many with foreign parent companies. E.ON is also owned by the Germans and EDF by a French business, while Scottish Power is part of the Spanish conglomerate Iberdrola.

Energy watchdogs demanded an investigation by the European Commission and the Competition Commission in this country to ensure there is no illegal price fixing.

Adam Scorer, campaigns chief at the consumer body Energywatch, hit out as the profiteering of the foreign energy giants.

"The big European energy companies treat Great Britain like Treasure Island,' he said.

"They raid the UK's North Sea for gas supplies when it is cheap but then levy punitive prices when demand is higher.

"This move suggests something is very badly wrong, not only in the GB energy market but in Europe as well. There is no actual shortage of gas across Europe, we have new pipelines to bring that gas to the UK, greater storage capacity and terminals to bring in supertankers full of liquefied natural gas."

The increases could not come at a worse time for people struggling with high mortgage repayments and soaring food and petrol prices.

The scale and speed of the increases shocked consumer groups, as Npower's 6.8million customers have been given no time to avoid the higher tariffs.

Firms like Npower, which supply gas and electricity direct to consumers, claim they are struggling to cope with rising wholesale prices, up by some 60per cent in the past year.

But the parent companies own gas fields or electricity generating power stations, which means the higher prices delivering a huge profits windfall.

Npower, the fourth-largest supplier, told its staff yesterday it was losing £2million a day. It said it had been 'forced' to increase the price of gas by an average of 17.2per cent, while electricity will rise by 12.7per cent.

The averages hide regional variations, however. Some 500,000 householders will see their gas tariff rise by 23.8per cent, while an increase of 27.1per cent is on the cards for 75,000 electricity customers.

Campaigners for the elderly are furious that Npower is overturning the convention that fuel prices go up in the spring, rather than the winter.

Gordon Lishman, director general of Age Concern, said: 'Many older people already feel they need to cut back on their heating. This may cause them to cut back further, putting their health at risk. Older people shouldn't have to worry about health versus wealth.' There were 22,300 deaths of elderly people linked to the cold last winter.

Giuseppe Di Vita, managing director of Npower's residential business, insisted: "Today's decision was not an easy one. We always try to protect our customers for as long as possible, but sadly higher energy prices are a fact of life."

But Joe Malinowski, of the price comparison website TheEnergyShop.com, said the scale of the rises was not justified. He said the current wholesale price of gas is 28per cent below the peak two years ago. Yet Npower customers' bills will now be at an all-time high.

Npower's owner, RWE, has come under fire before for dealings with UK customers and could now face a backlash. It collected hundreds of millions during the time it owned Thames Water, pushing up bills but repeatedly failing to deal with leaks.