Wholesale power costs jump 20% in a month
Wholesale power costs jumped almost 20% in just a month.
Prices are well below their peak in August 2022, but charges to upgrade the grid along with the impact of the war in Iran “mean we’ll see some electricity price hikes”, according to Daragh Cassidy of Bonkers.ie.
The jump was revealed in CSO figures released yesterday, which show wholesale prices rose by 19.2% in February.
However they were 2.4% lower than a year ago.
Despite the rise in prices, overall wholesale prices are down by more than 5% compared to a year ago.
However, construction materials prices rose across the industry.
Ready-mixed mortar and concrete were up 7.7%, copper pipes and fittings were up 7.2%, sand and gravel was up almost 5% and “rough” timber was up 4.6%, leading to fears of rises in building tender prices.
Utilities prices expert Mr Cassidy said: “Wholesale electricity prices can be quite volatile and a month-on-month change of between 10% to 20% up or down isn’t that uncommon these days.
“The key is to look at the figures over a longer period of six to 12 months. Indeed, prices are down slightly compared to last year and are now back at the level they were at in January.
“So we haven’t seen a huge impact on prices from the conflict in the Middle East just yet, though that could obviously change over the coming weeks.
“However, that’s not to say wholesale prices aren’t high. They are. They’re still around double the level they were at before the war in Ukraine broke out.
“On top of this, charges for the upkeep... of the grid continue to go up.
The jump was revealed in CSO figures released yesterday, which show wholesale prices rose by 19.2% in February.
“These now make up around 40% to 50% of the total cost of electricity for households.
“So a combination of stubbornly high wholesale prices and increasing grid costs is likely to mean we’ll see some hikes later in the year.”
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