Electricity prices in Northern Ireland are to rise by 14% from October, Power NI said.

The company blamed increases in the cost of wholesale electricity and said it was driven by rising fuel costs used in electricity generation, like gas.

A typical household using Power NI will see their annual bill rise from £497 per year to £565 per year, the Consumer Council said.

Power NI compared electricity prices over the last five years (Handout/Power NI)

Stephen McCully, managing director of Power NI, said: “Putting our prices up is the last thing we want to do, but unfortunately we are at the mercy of fluctuating world fuel prices.

“Gas, the main fuel used to generate electricity here, has increased significantly by 30% since we last set our prices.

“We’ve worked through a rigorous process with the Utility Regulator and our customers can be sure that although unwelcome, this increase is as low as possible and our prices are still cheaper than they were five years ago.”

Power NI supplies over 58% of local homes and has said that the increase will add £1.33 a week to a typical household bill.

John French, chief executive of The Consumer Council, said the increase broadly reflected those seen on wholesale energy markets.

“However, we would wish to highlight that households can still make significant savings within the electricity market in Northern Ireland by annually shopping around for the best deal.”

Power NI compared its prices against other countries (Handout/Power NI/PA)

Jenny Pyper, Utility Regulator chief executive said it was a difficult decision to approve an increase.

“Since the last tariff review in 2017, wholesale gas prices have increased by around 30%.”

Consumers will have already seen this rise in world fuel costs this year through increases to home heating oil of almost 50% and the cost of diesel at the pumps which has risen by 15%.

The regulator added: “It is a fact that global energy markets are volatile.

“Looking back at the last five years there have been two Power NI tariff increases, two decreases and one year where prices were frozen.

“Whilst the Utility Regulator can provide relative stability in terms of the other regulated costs that make up a customer’s bill, fluctuations in wholesale energy costs are simply outside of our control.”