1.7 million Bulb customers will see their gas and electricity bills rise for the second time this year, with the challenger energy supplier raising rates in response to soaring wholesale prices.

Bulb is adding an average of £ 69 to the cost of its standard credit rate from June 21. From that date, bi-fuel households will pay £ 1,126 per year with typical usage, just £ 12 less than the maximum that providers can charge as part of the price cap increase for energy.

This is the second time this year that Bulb has increased its prices. In April, Bulb added £ 91 to the average annual cost of its single meter tariff, pushing annual bills from £ 966 to £ 1,057. With the June price hikes added, Bulb customers will soon be paying £ 160 more for their energy per year.

Customers on Bulb’s prepayment tariff saw their bills increase by £ 137 per year to £ 1,147 from April 19. They will be spared from the latest price hikes as their bills are already close to the maximum allowed under the prepayment price cap (£ 1,156).

Bulb attributed the latest price hikes to rising wholesale energy costs, which it says have risen 29% since March and have doubled since this time last year. “So we need to increase our prices by around £ 1.33 per week for a typical member,” a spokesperson said.

Bulb notes that its prices remain below the energy price cap. He also says he passes on to customers any savings he sees. When the cost of providing energy ‘drops by more than £ 20 a year, so will our prices,’ the spokesperson said.

The supplier contacts its customers to inform them of invoice increases. All customers wishing to avoid price increases can switch to another supplier without paying an exit fee.

Customers signing up to Bulb from May 31st will automatically be billed at the new rates.

Bulb’s latest price hikes are unlikely to slow its momentum. The supplier was recently named Europe’s fastest growing company by the Financial Times, after its revenue jumped 1,159% between 2016 and 2019. Along the way, Bulb has grown its customer base from 200,000 homes in 2017 to around 2 million today.