Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 April 2016
505. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he has considered introducing legislation to require all suppliers of domestic electricity to have the same schedule of charges, including standing charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7768/16]
View answerI have no function in this matter. Responsibility for the regulation of the electricity market is a matter for the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) which is an independent regulator. The CER was assigned responsibility for the regulation of the Irish electricity sector following the enactment of the Electricity Regulation Act, 1999 and subsequent legislation. It is therefore a function of the CER to regulate the electricity market. The way a supplier presents information on a customer’s bill is a matter for the CER under the regulatory framework.
The Standing charge is a combination of the fixed charges associated with providing electricity network services (e.g. meter reading and network operations/maintenance) and a share of the supply costs in servicing customers’ electricity accounts. Standing charges vary from supplier to supplier and will be presented by the supplier under one of four classes of standing charges: Urban 24hr, Urban Nightsaver, Rural 24hr, Rural Nightsaver. Which class a customer falls under depends on meter type (whether 24hr or Nightsaver) and location, and for the latter, whether the urban or rural class applies depends on the location of the customer’s property.
