Power NI announces 10% cut to Northern Ireland electric bills

Power NI has announced a decrease of 10% in people's bills from November 1.

The company said it was able to introduce the change due to a government support scheme.

The Energy Regulator said after a review there was a need for the firm - Northern Ireland's biggest electric supplier - to increase tariffs by 60% due to significant increases in wholesale electricity costs.

However, it said the government’s energy price guarantee (EPG) scheme "will more than offset the increase identified by our tariff review, meaning that Power NI’s customers will see a net 10.4% decrease on their bills."

The EPG is to be in place for two years. It is a discount applied to the price of a unit of energy, not a price cap. This means bills will still depend on how much energy is used.

The change will represent a saving of £97 per annum for a typical customer. The firm has around 470,000 customers.

William Steele, of Power NI said: “As many customers will already be aware, the UK Government has announced a major intervention into the energy market called the Energy Price Guarantee (EPG).

"This means that from 1 November 2022, energy bill support will be provided to Northern Ireland residential customers, by reducing the underlying cost of electricity.

“We work hard to keep our prices as low as possible and in these challenging times, despite continued upward pressure on energy prices we have not increased our unit rate for residential customers since July 2022.”

He added: “Although we now must substantially increase our underlying price to reflect the current market, the implementation of the EPG will mean our customers will see a reduction in their billed tariff level of 10%.”

“Further support has also been announced for residential customers and we are working with the UK Government and Northern Ireland Utility Regulator to apply the Energy Bill Support Scheme (EBSS) £400 credit to our customers’ electricity accounts as soon as possible.”

“We value all our customers, and we remain committed to helping those who are being impacted by the cumulative rise in the cost of living and I would ask, for any customers who are worried about paying a bill, please get in contact and we will help you.

“As well as working directly with customers, we will continue to work closely with our charity partners and government, assisting in helping the most vulnerable in our society and those who are struggling.” The company explained the typical bill was around £846.72.

The Consumer Council's Peter McClenaghan added: "Thankfully, the government’s Energy Price Guarantee has helped avoid what would have otherwise been a very large price increase for Power NI customers on 1 November 2022.

"Instead, Power NI customers will experience a welcome reduction in their bills as will all other domestic electricity consumers."

He continued: "Northern Ireland has five different electricity suppliers, all offering different rates, payment options and billing methods. Switching between suppliers or making sure you are on the best deal your current supplier provides could help reduce your energy bills.

"Even when the Energy Price Guarantee is in place, energy bills will be higher than normal and some consumers in Northern Ireland could save hundreds of pounds per year simply by switching supplier."

John French, chief executive of the Utility Regulator said: “Regulated suppliers in Northern Ireland are required to seek our approval before they change their tariffs.

"Our scrutiny of Power NI’s tariffs identified a need to increase their tariffs because of skyrocketing wholesale prices. The increase also reflects the fact that the company has not changed its tariffs since July 2022, and had built up a large under-recovery of revenue at a time of ongoing volatility in wholesale prices. “However, this is the first regulated tariff review in the context of the UK Government’s energy price guarantee scheme. This scheme reduces the amount consumers will be charged per unit of gas or electricity for two years, effective from 1 November 2022. This significant support by the UK Government will mean that Power NI’s customers will actually see a reduction in their bills from 1 November. “This means that, from 1 November, when the new tariff takes effect, the Power NI average domestic credit customer (with energy price guarantee – EPG - applied) will pay £847 a year, compared to GB average standard tariff (£1,369 per year) and the RoI average standard tariff (£1,634 per year).

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