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Bord Gáis Energy to cut electricity and gas prices

Reduction in unit cost will see household energy bills fall by about €54 a year

Bord Gáis Energy said the fall in international wholesale costs provides the opportunity to reduce domestic costs.
Bord Gáis Energy said the fall in international wholesale costs provides the opportunity to reduce domestic costs.
Thu Jan 22 2015 - 14:34

Bord Gáis Energy has announced plans to cut the unit price of gas and electricity, reducing customers’ household energy bills by about €54 a year.

On March 16th the company will cut the unit rate of gas by 3.5 per cent and the unit rate of electricity by 2.5 per cent, reducing the average household energy bill by €54.38.

Although the chairman of the Oireachtas transport and communication committee John O’Mahony welcomed the reduction, he said it would have been better if the cuts were effective immediately.

“It would have been far preferable for the price reductions to have been applicable from now as opposed to from March 16th as Bord Gáis has announced,” the Fine Gael TD said.

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“The worst of the cold weather should have passed by that point. Delaying the price cut till March 16th lessens the potential savings that customers can make.”

Bord Gáis said “the drop in prices comes from an ongoing review of reduction in wholesale energy costs”.

A spokesman said wholesale gas is bought far in advance so it takes time for the benefit of the price drop to reach customers.

The company’s chief operating officer Dave Kirwan said, “with the reduction in international wholesale energy costs, we now have the opportunity to drop our prices in both gas and electricity and we are happy to be able to do so”.

He added: “We will continue to monitor wholesale and other costs and should further savings occur we will seek to reflect that in our prices.

Mr O’Mahony said he has called the heads of Irish energy companies to appear before the Oireachtas commitee in the near future.

“Those who have not reduced their prices by then will be asked to account for how they can continue to charge the same prices for energy despite a fall in global energy prices,” he said.