Gas price to rise by 39% and Electric by 27% in April.

Ubbquittious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118856573#Comment_118856573

They wheeled out a price-hike cart not so long ago so hopefully it will take them a while to prepare a new one.

arctictree

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118856893#Comment_118856893

But why would they raise electricity prices when they are not buying oil and gas? Would seem to me like a perfect opportunity to get customers from their competitors using fossil fuels.

Ubbquittious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118856916#Comment_118856916

The guys who own these companies all probably play golf at the same club and attend the same conferences so they're not going to eat each other's lunch

Dont Be at It

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118856916#Comment_118856916

That's not how it works, unfortunately. No energy company subsidises their retail arm using their upstream generation. The wholesale cost of power, by and large, dictates the price for the customer. Can vary a bit depending on when the company locked in the price but not massively.

And the wholesale cost of power is 90% determined by wholesale gas (up ~400% year on year) and carbon prices (up maybe 200%).

Every company that already hasn't will be announces increases in the coming weeks. And most will likely have another similar increase in 6 - 9 months again.

The only thing that has "saved" us so far is that all the big energy companies would have locked in at least some of this current period at lower wholesale prices 12 - 18 months ago. But that's coming to an end now.

Potatoeman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118856385#Comment_118856385

The fact the current government gave out a blanket invite to an unknown number of refugees with no plan on where to put them or how it will impact current services is what people will remember. It’s the current government that are responsible for the result of this. Interest rates going up will impact government borrowing too, that means less money coming in on top of the tax take falling on top of fuel and food price increases with inflation.

is_that_so

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118857284#Comment_118857284

It will cost far more for government efforts to mitigate fuel and energy costs. Giving war refugees somewhere to stay is just what one does as a civilised country anyway. They are welcome and it will cost what it does to help them. Rates are unlikely to move anywhere until the ECB determines how embedded inflation is. Even at 12 months of it you could see them holding off as we are still barely post-COVID at this stage. How inflation goes really depends on the whole Russian misadventure and the same applies for energy costs.

reniwren

I have a bad feeling that once these prices are in their in. Why would a company want to reduce the amount of profit it can make once they have an excuse to bring it in. Insurance is still high even with all the changes made for that industry.

Dont Be at It

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118857698#Comment_118857698

Nah, they'll come back down if/when gas prices come back down.

Companies are always trying to acquire new customers and the best way to do that is through price.

Potatoeman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118857403#Comment_118857403

You take in a manageable amount, the government has no cap so any number could arrive. Zero planning on where to put them, talk of new builds when the construction sector is saying it’s not profitable so they are not doing it. No plan on the impact on education or the health sector just the parrot message of no limit.

Interest rates have to go up to fight inflation, if you don’t do it then you get hyper inflation. Europe will push it soon enough, the US have already started. This is separate from the energy and commodities price increase.

Printing money is never free eventually you devalue the existing supply, this is also a result of printing money for COVID not just the situation in Ukraine.

Spanish Eyes

Anyone with VHI is going to get a rebate apparently. I thought premia would increase TBH since fewer people can afford PHI especially the younger cohort renting or saving for deposits, who subsidise the oldies like me. But so it seems.

A chink of light in the never ending news of increases.

FarmerBrowne

Definitely time to start running the gas of the electricity and the electricity of the gas, bound to be a couple hundred Euro in savings.

Sweet.Science

Not only are energy prices soaring and the cost of living becoming unsustainable but now the taoiseach is hinting and tax increases in the next budget. Lovely

Mr. teddywinkles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118857742#Comment_118857742

Dont forget building materials gone through the roof. Might affect new builds starting by a lot.

lawred2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118859506#Comment_118859506

Wasn't Leo only talking a week or so ago about asking Paschal about that extra band of income tax to reduce the "burden"..

Cape Clear

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860062#Comment_118860062

Question is would this new band pull those on the higher end of the lower rate onto 30%? A lot of kites flying about at the moment.

tjhook

I see some media outlets are putting a spotlight on the 55% discount given to staff in ESB.

I haven't seen any statement on whether or not the staff pay BIK on this. If they do then fair enough, but if not it means the profit margin on energy is at least 55%. From the Revenue website:

You may give your employee a discount on goods or services that you produce or sell in your business. This is not a taxable benefit in kind where:

the amount paid by your employee is greater than or equal to the costs you incur to provide them with the item

the goods cannot easily be changed into money (your employee is not able to sell the item easily).

Danno

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118848605#Comment_118848605

The VAT needs to be at a lower level on energy, sure isn't that one of the reasons Brexit happened (LOL), so that Britain could set its own VAT rates without approval from the EU. That same EU needs to get its act together PDQ for all our sakes, and get out of the Berlaymont Building and live in the real world.

Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be bumpy alright.

The EU isn't worth a toss - you've had Leo on the airwaves a month ago telling us that VAT on fuel prices was a no-go owing to EU directives.

The EU should have passed a directive overnight the minute a Russian boot hit the Ukrainian ground that capped all road fuels at €1.50 per litre and all electricity at 20c a unit across all EU states.

If they can pass directives that compel governments to charge a rate that causes us hardship, then they need to pass directives that compel prices to remove said hardship. Otherwise they can fook right off and forget about the EU altogether. They are proving themselves to be just a club for big business and fook the citizen.

Snugbugrug28

It's a perk of their job and ultimately comes down to job market forces. Non-story.

Potatoeman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860229#Comment_118860229

It because it’s bought from international markets, it gone up in price everywhere. Our government is doing nothing as they have already overspent on the refugee crisis. Inflation is next and they’ll do SFA for that too.

Viscount Aggro

Theres still too much wasteful spending by consumers.

Look at the number of food delivery guys on the road.

I even see people having McDonalds meals delivered this way.

What a lazy way to live.

Delivery pizza "deals" for 19.99

So this pizza is 10 times better than one you can buy in a supermarket.

Snopake

I just recently found out that these price increases do not give you a break in your contract. Signed up 6 weeks ago to Bord Gais which was the best deal at the time and hit with a 29% increase from April. Phoned up expecting that I would be able to move given the price increase but was told that only the discount I signed up for at the time was fixed and that them changing the unit price or standing charge did not break the contract

Cape Clear

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860618#Comment_118860618

Maybe take away coffees should be taxed along the same lines as cigarettes to deter people wasting money on it. People must be spending a grand a year on the stuff without even thinking about it.

Viscount Aggro

The standing charge increases by the same percentage. Thats the killer... you cant save much by cutting back on usage.

Its a classic squeeze, real effect on people's standard of living.

Off grid living is looking more attractive.

Mr. teddywinkles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860705#Comment_118860705

I dont buy take away coffee but is that

really justification for everything on the rise. Just cut back on anything nice. People work too damn hard.

I'm sure there is something our mighty overlords can do.

They've been micro managing every other detail of our lives for the past few years

Surely when a real problem crops up they can fix it🤨

lawred2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860126#Comment_118860126

profit margin of 55%

it doesn't mean that at all.. an organisation can choose to benefit their staff at a loss to themselves

Either way - this is typical INM clickbait crap. Some people get benefits from their employer. Why shouldn't ESB staff? Absolute non story.

techdiver

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860671#Comment_118860671

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860721#Comment_118860721

These practices should be outlawed. It's sneaky and deliberately so. If a price increases during a contract then the contract should be void.

Also, the increase in the wholesale price of gas does not increase the cost of delivering it as that is pushed onto the unit rate. Increases in standing charges are not justified. They are just a means of squeezing money from people who decide to cut back on usage regardless.

Cape Clear

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860824#Comment_118860824

I wouldn't hold my breath or expect the government to do much tbh. Irrespective of how hard people work very few of us have unlimited income. When needs must luxuries should be curtailed.

Leg End Reject

https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2022/0331/1289543-cost-living/

Here ye go, do your laundry in the middle of the night. 🙄🙄

BattleCorp1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860865#Comment_118860865

I'm curious. Do they pay benefit in kind on this benefit? Or is this a benefit that isn't taxable?

Potatoeman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118860705#Comment_118860705

Why stop there, why not hairdressers and nailbars, you don’t Need a holiday and your kids don’t need birthday or Christmas presents.

The government is planning a 20c tax on disposal coffee cups, great timing. Inflation hitting and they want to increase the price of coffee. People will cut coffee out already.

All those delivery drivers and baristas will be on the dole, so how much money will it actually save?