A Clare Government Senator has slated the Energy Regulator for its decision to hike electricity prices for householders, saying it flies in the face of how normal business works.
Householders are facing increased costs of around 100 euro from October, after the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities approved an increase in funding to operate and develop the electricity grid.
Residential electricity prices have been slowly moderating in recent months as a result of price reductions announced by a number of providers.
It seems the reprieve, which followed massive increases resulting from the impact of the war in Ukraine on energy supplies, may have been short lived though, because householders will be facing another hike of around 100 euro over the course of the year.
This is because the energy regulator has approved an increase in the network charge in order to fund the annual investment in the electricity network.
This, it says, is needed to provide resilient uninterrupted supply and maintain a high level of service by companies for their customers.
The President of the Clare branch of St Vincent De Paul claims the rise will have a significant impact on the low or fixed-income families the organisation supports in this county though.
Denis Carty says households are already struggling as a result of the increased cost of living and is warning that the increased cost will add to what’s already expected to be a very difficult winter for many families.
Clare’s Fianna Fáil Senator has strongly criticised the move, saying that forcing the consumer to foot the bill for the expansion flies in the face of the normal way of doing business.
Timmy Dooley has warned the increased cost will impact a broad spectrum of people barely managing to make ends meet, and not just low and fixed income families.
The Tulla-based Senator insists the regulator should push back against the ESB and Eirgrid and force them to look at other ways to fund network upgrades.
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