Mobile network operators are warning they could need to ration phone signal access to combat rocketing energy prices. Telecoms giants including VodafoneThree, Virgin Media O2 and BT-owned EE said they were drawing up emergency contingency plans after being excluded from Rachel Reeves’s energy support scheme as the war in Iran rages on.

The plans include rationing access to their networks, slowing down speeds or increasing pricing. Broadband could also be hit by the move while mobile phone services such as calls and internet data could be the worst affected. Operators hope to reduce energy use in order to combat the ongoing impact of the war in Iran.

Mobile networks consumer just under 1 terawatt-hour of electricity every year which is the equivalent of powering 370,000 homes a year. Bosses are now warning that increasing energy costs could force plans to expand 5G networks to be scaled back.

Energy costs are continuing to surge with prices increasing by 70% in recent years. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has caused the price of electricity to rise by 33% since the start of the war in Iran.

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