Flogas has frozen electricity and gas prices for 12 months following several rounds of hikes by electricity and gas providers over the past two years.
The company has launched 12-month fixed rates for new and existing customers, its first fixed-rate offer for several years, and the first offered in the marketplace in since 2020 before Budget Energy and Iberdroia exited the market.
“We launched our fixed electricity and natural gas rates to provide new and existing customers with twelve months of certainty in what has been an extremely volatile marketplace to date," said Sean O'Loughlin, general manager of Flogas Energy.
"These will be constantly reviewed but they are now among the most competitive in the marketplace.”
The average customer on the Flogas Winter Warmer fixed rate for electricity using 4,200 kWh of electricity would pay €2,036 for the year. Customers on the Winter Warmer fixed rate for natural gas using 11,000 kWh would pay €1,638 on average.
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Both totals take into account the payment of a €150 welcome bonus, which increases to €300 for customers signed up to the Flogas Dual Fuel package, which costs €3,674 based on average household consumption as measured by the CRU.
According to Bonkers.ie, Flogas' dual fuel bundle is the cheapest first-year bill on the market by €48 per year ahead of Electric Ireland (€3,722). The gas deal is also the cheapest in Ireland at present by €25 ahead of SSE Airtricity (€1,663). The electricity deal is around €15 more expensive than the offer from Electric Ireland (€2,021) though.
Darragh Cassidy, head of communications at Bonkers.ie, said the fixed-rate deals were "good value" relative to the market and could "offer certainty to households and help with budgeting".
"Usually fixed energy deals are more expensive than variable energy deals as you’re paying for the certainty of locking in a price for an entire year," Cassidy continued.
"However most households which use an average amount of gas and electricity will find these deals among the cheapest in the market right now."
Cassidy warned that prices could fall during customers' contract with Flogas, with wholesale prices having eased in recent weeks, adding that the outlook remains very uncertain.
"Indeed, in December the wholesale price of electricity in Ireland shot up again by over 90% compared to the previous month having fallen for a few months in a row. So this is a risk consumers have to weigh up," he said.
“You can of course break your contract, but you’ll be hit with a €50 per fuel early-exit fee and may also have to pay back any welcome credit you got.
“And of course, consumers are just getting a fixed unit price for their gas and electricity. It’s important to remember that your bill will still change based on how much energy you actually use.”
(Pic: Getty Images)
