Utility Bills Set to Drop Again

The price of electricity is to fall for the second time this year, NIE announced on the 15th September. This latest drop, of around 5%, comes 9 months after NIE cut prices by 10.8%. For NIE customers this will represent a £26 reduction in the average bill. When coupled with the price cut from earlier this year, "typical users" are saving around £89 per bill.

The Utility Regulator welcomed the price reduction, and consequent saving for consumers. Its Chief executive Iain Osborne, stated: “Our ongoing scrutiny of tariffs means consumers feel the benefits of cost reductions in their bills as soon as possible. During 2009, this has meant electricity bills in Northern Ireland have fallen more quickly than other parts of the UK and the Republic of Ireland." With regard to the level of the price drop he stated that “This 5% reduction in power costs is less than we saw in gas. This is chiefly because consumers already saw two-thirds of the reduction (the 10.8% drop in January), and also because some costs have gone up.”

The Consumer Council was dissappointed with the level of the latest cut, saying it only represented 50p per week and fell short of consumers' expectation.  The Council's cheif executive, Antoinette McKeown, said that while the price drop was "welcome", savings to the customer would be "negligible". "Coming after a 40% reduction in wholesale fuel over the last year and after Phoenix's decision last week to reduce bills by 19%.......... consumers will understandably be very disappointed," she said.

 NIE Energy managing director Stephen McCully said: “We know household budgets are tight at the moment, so we are pleased to be able to cut prices for the second time.”

Also on Tuesday, natural gas supplier Firmus Energy announced a 17.7% reduction in their domestic tariffs. This will mean savings of £96 for customers in the 10 towns they supply. Mark Prentice, Firmus energy’s general manager, said: “We are delighted to announce such a significant reduction in gas bills for our customers, particularly as we come into the winter months.”