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STAYING WARM THIS winter will cost a little more if Bord Gáis Energy receive the permission sought to increase its residential gas tariffs by 7.54 per cent from October.
The Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) has started a public consultation in relation to the request and it will make its decision in August.
BG Energy told the regulator that the price hike is due to higher commodity costs and network tariffs – and not because of company expenditure or processes. As Ireland receives virtually all of its gas from Great Britain, costs have increased because the value of the euro has decreased considerably against sterling over the past 12 months, it explained in its application.
The CER has said it will only allow the agency to pass on costs to customers if they are “efficiently-incurred”.
In a statement published yesterday, it added:
If, following the public consultation and a CER review, a gas price rise is granted, it would be with regret given the current difficult economic climate.
There have been a number of gas prices rises across European countries since 2010 and recent data from Eurostat shows that Ireland’s residential gas prices are below EU average.
The regulator has encouraged consumers to ‘shop around’ before settling down with a supplier.
Last year, BG Energy received approval for a 22 per cent price hike. Although its tariffs are the only ones set by the regulator, other energy suppliers such as ESB and Airtricity will normally track trends in the market.
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“Ireland receives virtually all of its gas from Great Britain”. It’s a real shame that we don’t have big natural gas fields off the coast of this country.
Dave Cully
I like your comment , but can only give it one thumbs up !
It would be quite a comfortable prospect if we could find something ………
But sure doesn’t some Scandinavian company own all the rights to our offshore fossil fuels, or am I imagining that? Remember our generous govnmnt giving it away for pittance
Eoin
I heard something about that during the week and a company called Providence whose CEO or maybe some other high ranking executive officer is one Tony O ‘ Reilly Junior , but I may have been dreaming . Our government could not be THAT effin stupid …… or are they ?
Of course they are. Sure they’re gonna sell state assets at the bottom of the market for some half arsed 2.5billion job stimulus. Watch the forests go next.
eoin i think the people of ireland have a good case for bribery on this one
I have a set amount of money. Increasing price means i will use less gas, it does not mean that you will make more!! When will these idiots realise this!!!
If you use less then they have to buy less. So they get the same money from you but supply less gas.
And is that a bad thing in general when talking about a fossil fuel with a finite supply?
So their plan to reduce fossil fuels is working. Also encouraging people to be more conservative! Win win
Easy answer to that – move supplier ! Very easy to do ! !
They ripping us off for years ! !
Why don’t they get rid of some of their massively overpaid staff, or cut wages? That’s how most companies are forced to deal with falling profits!
+ 1 any business in a recession needs to cut back on staff and over head not increase prices in a country with no inflation or wage increases. its just unbelievable.
Moving supplier doesn’t work if one moves price the others do too, happened the last time will happen again
Buy a nice heavy coat and some longjohns.
It boggles my mind that most gas heaters and boilers in Ireland are activated by timers, not thermostats, even in fairly newly-built houses.
People have no idea how much energy those heaters waste.
Micro-combined heat & power boilers:
Typically, 90-95% of the fuel a micro CHP unit burns is utilised. This is excellent when compared with a conventional power station which typically wastes 60% of the fuel it burns in the form of heat. Therefore, less carbon is emitted.
CHP units use a Stirling engine and a generator which produces both heat and electricity. The heat and electricity it produces can be used within the home.
Stirling engines are very efficient, friction free and require no maintenance.
MicroCHP boilers offer savings to hoseholds and have been available in almost all developed nations for over a decade except for Ireland.
As long as the state is held hostage to vested interests consumers will end up bearing the cost.
Our economy is dominated by a both a zombie banking sector and a zombie energy sector. Both continue to contribute little to the economy, but continue to become an increasing burden for households and taxpayers.
How much money would be saved if they stopped sponsoring the Grand Canal Theatre? Its hard not to be sycnical and wonder is this why an increase is being looked for.
Well there’s plenty of shale gas… Frack it on out and pump it into the network like the USA has been doing safely and without ill effects for several years now… Supply and demand
Ah sure it’s not that expensive in the first place. Always seems good value to me.
NOT AGAIN :-|
Id love to hear from the red thumbs. Surely Bord Gais looking for an increase should be questioned when they continue to spend money on sponsoring theatres.
Perhaps we’ll all get free tickets to Michael Buble or something equally as frightening?
They’d save a mint if they stopped sending me direct mail crap that goes straight to the bin.
have your say