The energy company reported adjusted pre-tax profits of £1.4bn for the 12 months to the end of March, up 5.6% on last year.

It also reported a 27.5% increase in year-on-year profits in its retail operations, despite a fall in the number of energy customer accounts SSE handles in the UK and Ireland.

SSE reported its retail operating profits were up from £321.6m to £410.1m, with the energy company admitting that it has benefitted from people keeping their heating on for longer due to colder than normal weather.

The profits update came alongside a warning that SSE customers could face a potential price hike due to increased costs of over £80 per dual fuel customer.

The company said it ‘it will shield customers for as long as possible but it is highly likely that these additional costs will eventually have to be reflected in higher prices for household customers’.

Ann Robinson, director of consumer policy at uSwitch.com, says: “These profits will be seen as a smoking gun, making it difficult for any supplier to justify last winter’s price hikes and the pressure they have placed on consumers.

“People have been going cold for fear of the cost of turning their heating on – in these circumstances a price cut or a price freeze is the only suitable peace offering and would go some way to helping and reassuring consumers.

“SSE has gone part of the way by saying that it will be holding-off from a price hike for as long as possible. Whether this will be enough to reassure consumers remains to be seen.”

SSE last hiked its gas and electricity prices in October (2012) by £119 or 9.6%

The company also received a record £10.5m fine from regulator Ofgem for misleading potential customers, and expects to pay out a further £1.5m in compensation to its affected customers.

According to uSwitch.com there is currently over £320 difference between the cheapest and most expensive energy tariffs on the market, and customers are being urged to shop around to find the best deal for their needs.