The Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU) has formally announced today that electricity customers will receive a payment of €89.10 as the charge to fund renewables is not needed due to the high wholesale price of electricity.
The payment will be made in monthly installments of €12.73 from March to September.
Customers will receive the payment as a credit on their bills. Pre-paid customers will have their daily standing charge reduced.
The Public Service Obligation levy (PSO) is in place to fund the investment in renewable power generation.
But because renewable generators have benefited from high wholesale prices over the past year, this subsidy is no longer required.
The director of supply security and the wholesale market at the Commission for Regulation of Utilities said the refund is a result of the public service obligation (PSO) support scheme for electricity generators not needing this fund.
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Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, John Melvin explained that as a result, all domestic customers will receive this PSO payment of €89.10 over the period from 1 March to the end of September this year.
"Bill pay customers will get this through a €12.73 per month payment on their bill and pre-payment customers will have this automatically credited to their meter each day, customers do not have to do anything to get this," he said.
He also said that customers can still switch providers and they will still get the credit no matter how many times you switch.
Mr Melvin said that credit is being given monthly rather than in a lump sum as it is collected over 12 months as part of people's bills and is being refunded as it is not now needed to support the electricity generators.
In relation to domestic bills not being reduced despite the reduction in wholesale energy prices, he said that suppliers tend to buy the gas and electricity that they will supply to customers ahead of time.
