A number of energy suppliers in Northern Ireland have announced changes to their tariffs from this month, which will change how much the average household pays.
It comes as an Energy Price Guarantee that was announced in November will reduce. The guarantee discounted energy bills by up to 19.9p per unit of electricity and 4.8p for gas.
From January to March 2023 the discount will be up to 13.6p per unit of electricity and 3.9p per unit of gas.
Read more: Households told they could save £1,000 on energy bills
As a result, the amount you pay for gas or electricity in Northern Ireland may change between December 2022 and January 2023, which means saving money will become even more important.
We have put together a list of what changes are coming in this month and what it could mean for the typical annual household energy bill.
Electricity
- Power NI: No change at £847/year
- SSE Airtricity: Up 31% to £899/year
- Electric Ireland: Up 91% to £1,059/year
- Budget Energy: Up 19% to £1,337/year
- Click Energy: Up 36% to £801/year
Gas
- SSE Airtricity: December 2022 vs Jan 2023 - up 12% to £1,103
- Firmus Energy (Greater Belfast): December 2022 vs Jan 2023 - down 17% to £1,466
- Firmus Energy (Ten Towns): December 2022 vs Jan 2023 - down 24% to £1,327
How to save £1,000 on energy bills
The Consumer Council has calling on consumers to consider changing energy suppliers to save money on their bills as reduction to the Energy Price Guarantee scheme discount comes into effect.
Director of Infrastructure and Sustainability at the Consumer Council Peter McClenaghan said: “The discount the government has been providing on all electricity and gas tariffs has taken some of the financial pressure off consumers, but unfortunately the support is reducing which means the price of some energy bills may go up again depending on who your supplier is.
"As there are big differences in prices between suppliers, we are encouraging consumers to think about switching supplier or tariff.
"Switching will not change the amount of government tariff discount consumers receive and will not prevent them receiving the additional £600 support payment but it could help them save money.
"Some households could make savings of over £1,000 by switching from the most expensive electricity and gas tariffs to the cheapest tariffs currently available."
To take the hassle out of switching, the Consumer Council’s free online Energy Price Comparison Tool lets consumers see all available tariffs from all suppliers in one place.
This empowers consumers to check which options give them the best deal for their energy. Consumers electricity and gas supplies won’t be interrupted during the switching process.
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