Gas firm passes onbulk of supply saving to Belfast

The Consumer Council has welcomed Firmus Energy’s decision to reduce natural gas tariffs in the Greater Belfast area by up to 10 per cent and 5 per cent in the Ten Towns licence area, which includes Londonderry.

Overall, this will mean the annual gas bill of a typical household with a credit meter in Greater Belfast will fall by £57 and £31 in the Ten Towns.

A current typical annual Firmus Greater Belfast domestic gas bill is £573, whilst a new typical annual Firmus Greater Belfast domestic gas bill is £516.

But a current typical annual Firmus 10 Towns domestic gas bill is £618. A new typical annual Firmus 10 Towns domestic gas bill is £587.

Gas tariff reductions are effective from October 5 for the Greater Belfast area and October 1, 2015 for Ten Towns area.

Richard Williams, Head of Energy at the Consumer Council said: “The reduction in Firmus Energy’s tariffs of up to 10 per cent in Greater Belfast and 5 per cent in the Ten Towns is positive news for consumers. The reduction comes on the back of sustained falls in the international wholesale gas market and follows last week’s announcement from SSE Airtricity. Overall, this will mean the annual gas bill of a typical household with a credit meter in Greater Belfast will fall by £57 and £31 in the Ten Towns.”

Richard added: “In addition gas customers in Greater Belfast can choose between Firmus Energy and SSE Airtricity as their natural gas supplier.”