Fourth electricity and gas supplier cuts prices as energy crisis eases on households

SSE Airtricity, one of the big four suppliers in the market, is reducing electricity unit rates for its household customers by 12pc from November 1.

The price reduction will see a typical electricity customer save €233 (including Vat) a year, it said.

Gas customers will see standard unit rates come down by 10pc.

There is no reduction in its standing charge.

SSE Airtricity said the price reductions will see a typical dual-fuel customer save €384.55 (including Vat) over a year.

All domestic Republic of Ireland gas and electricity customers will automatically have the reduced rate applied to their bills.

SSE Airtricity provides energy to more than 700,000 homes across the island of Ireland.

It comes after the largest electricity supplier in the State, Electric Ireland, this week said it was reducing electricity and gas unit prices and the standing charges from the start of November.

The Electric Ireland reduction in residential electricity unit rates and standing charges works out at 10pc, and equates to an annual saving of €212 on the average electricity bill. 

Electric Ireland residential gas unit rates and standing charges are coming down by 12pc, which equates to an annual saving of €217. 

This would be a combined annual reduction of €429 for Electric Ireland’s dual-fuel customers, it said.

Energia announced price reductions of up to 20pc last week, with Pinergy giving its customers two price cuts so far this year.

New entrant Yuno Energy is promising it can save customers more than €500 a year on their electricity bills by closely monitoring their energy usage at home.

SSE Airtricity said that in the coming weeks it will introduce a new fixed tariff product that will provide price certainty for customers who wish to avail of it. Details of this new offer will be announced at the end of the month.

Last year SSE Airtricity became the first supplier to announce it would forego profits in favour of supporting customers through the cost-of-living crisis.

The provider also established the largest customer support fund in the market, valued at €25m, which included charitable donations of €1m to St Vincent de Paul and the development of warm referrals programmes with MABS and Alone.

Managing director of SSE Airtricity Klair Neenan said: “We’re acutely aware of the pressure people have been experiencing with the cost-of-living crisis and we recognise that this continues to be a difficult time for many.

“We recognise that volatility has impacted customers over the past number of years, and we want to provide price certainty for customers who want to manage their energy costs. SSE Airtricity is working on solutions that deliver on this promise in the coming weeks.”

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Despite the cuts, household energy prices remain around double what they were in 2020 before Covid and then the war in Ukraine wreaked havoc with energy prices.

Energy companies acknowledge that wholesale energy costs have fallen but they remain 300pc higher than in 2020.

This week Taoiseach Leo Varadkar promised there will be financial support for businesses and householders with energy bills in the Budget.

“The basic principle is that there will be help for households and businesses with energy costs, it will be announced in the Budget. It’s being done because we don’t believe energy prices will have fallen fast enough by then,” he said.

He said that there would be more help for people with energy bills, adding that it was “pretty obvious that people will need help” with bills during the winter.