Wholesale electricity prices down 70% compared to last year

Tomas Doherty

Wholesale electricity prices fell by more than 70 per cent in the 12 months to August this year, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office.

While the cost of wholesale electricity increased by 10 per cent in the month to August, prices were 72 per cent lower in August compared to the same time last year.

Last summer was the height of the energy crisis when wholesale gas and electricity prices reached record-high levels in Ireland and the rest of Europe.

The wholesale price of electricity in Ireland reached almost €400 per MWh versus an average of around €38 per MWh for all of 2020.

Daragh Cassidy, from price comparison site bonkers.ie, said the percentage drop in the wholesale electricity price reflects how prices have fallen from extremely high levels.

"A lot of the increase in wholesale prices wasn’t passed on to households in the first place," he said.

"The simple fact is that despite the huge drop over the past 12 months, wholesale electricity prices this August were still around 250 per cent above what would until recently have been considered normal levels."

"And the average price over the past six months, which is a better figure to use, is around three times normal levels."

Energy companies have faced renewed political pressure to pass on falling wholesale energy prices to customers.

SSE Airtricity announced that it would cut its electricity prices by 12 per cent and gas prices by 10 per cent from November 1st, with Pinergy, Energia, Flogas and Electric Ireland also announcing cuts ahead of the winter.

Earlier this month Leo Varadkar said he told energy companies that they "must go further to reduce" prices in future billing cycles.

The Taoiseach and Minister for Environment and Climate Eamon Ryan met with Ireland’s four largest energy retailers – SSE Electricity, Bord Gáis Energy, Energia and Electric Ireland – last week to express concern at "persistently high" energy prices.