The Energy Price Guarantee will "provide support beyond March", the UK Government has said.
The Energy Price Guarantee started on November 1 last year and is due to come to an end at the beginning of April after providing roughly £600 worth of support to households during that time.
There were concerns, particularly for those who are vulnerable or on low incomes that once the scheme ended, they could find themselves in financial difficulty due to increases in energy bills.
Read more: Cost of living: Online portal opens to allow households access £600 energy support payment
The UK Government has now said that the Energy Price Guarantee scheme will continue to provide support after March.
A UK Government spokesperson said: “In the absence of the NI Executive, the UK Government has stepped in and worked as quickly as possible to deliver vital energy bill support for households.
“Support will continue to be available to customers in Northern Ireland after March through the Energy Price Guarantee scheme.
“The cost of energy has already been falling and we expect this to drop further over the coming months, which we fully expect suppliers to pass onto their customers.”
The Consumer Council has said that it is engaging with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero [formerly BEIS] in order to stress the importance of continued support for customers in Northern Ireland, particularly those who are vulnerable or on low incomes.
A survey by the organisation in December 2022, found that 97% of respondents were concerned about their home energy bills.
Speaking to Belfast Live, Peter McClenaghan, Director of Infrastructure and Sustainability at the Consumer Council said: “While the £600 energy bill support scheme has received most media attention, the Energy Price Guarantee has been a huge support to consumers in Northern Ireland this winter.
"Consumer Council data suggests that local domestic consumers using electricity and gas will have benefited to the tune of £600 from the Energy Price Guarantee between November 2022 and March 2023. This means that the average energy and gas consumer here has received at least £1,200 of Government support for their energy bills this winter.
"The Consumer Council is engaging with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero [formerly BEIS] and in doing so we are reiterating the importance of continued support for Northern Ireland consumers, particularly those with lower incomes or vulnerabilities.
"We are doing so in the knowledge that 97% of consumers who responded to our December 2022 quarterly pulse survey told us they are concerned about the cost of home energy, while heating oil prices remain 40% above the five-year average and wholesale natural gas prices are more than three times the pre-pandemic norm for the coming winter.”
Consumers can visit www.consumercouncil.org.uk/costofliving/energy to view a range of information on how to save money on bills, energy efficiency advice, and to use our online price comparison tools to ensure you are on the cheapest tariff for your gas and electricity.
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