Gas company Firmus is cutting its prices from January, it has been announced today.
The energy firm says it will be reducing its tariffs for customers in the Ten Towns Network area by 20.52% and by 17.60% in the Greater Belfast Network area, from January 1, 2023.
They say the move will reduce the average cost to homes by £8.83 per week in Ten Towns and by £7.92 in Greater Belfast. Asked why there is a difference between the two tariff areas, the firm would only say they are ‘separate tariffs and networks’. On an annual basis, Firmus added, the reduction will save customers £460 and £410, on average, respectively.
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In September Firmus announced a 56.3% price rise across both its networks in Northern Ireland. The increase affected about 62,000 customers in the Ten Towns area and 47,000 in Greater Belfast. The Ten Towns area includes Antrim, Armagh, Ballymena, Coleraine, Craigavon, Derry and Newry.
Announcing the price decreases, Niall Martindale, Chief Executive Officer of firmus energy said: “firmus energy is pleased to be announcing this price reduction. Throughout this challenging period, we committed that as soon as market conditions allowed us to lower our prices we would do so, and today we are pleased to confirm that prices will be reduced from January 2023.
“The Government’s EPG scheme will provide further savings and we welcome the additional support it is providing to our customers at this time.”
From January 1, 2023, the UK Government’s Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) Scheme is expected to further reduce the price customers pay by 3.893 pence per kWh, providing a further reduction in gas bills of up to 27.6%.
The news comes amid an ongoing cost of living crisis and confusion over when Northern Ireland households will get Government promised help with their energy bills. The lack of clarity on when the Treasury-funded payments will be made has become the focus of intense political dispute amid the ongoing powersharing vacuum.
Households in the region are due to be credited with a £400 payment automatically, to help with energy costs this winter as part of a UK-wide scheme. In his autumn statement, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said all households in Northern Ireland would receive an additional £200 payment, in recognition of the region’s dependence on home heating oil.
While consumers in the rest of the UK have already begun to receive support payments, there has been no decision about how and when they will be made in Northern Ireland.
But last week Business minister Graham Stuart told the Commons last week that he cannot see the Energy Bill Support Scheme payments being issued to Northern Ireland before Christmas but is hoping to “stand that up” in January.
Home heating oil prices have fallen slightly over recent weeks too with 500 litres now costing around £420, down from £500 in October.
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