July’s end saw Bord Gáis Energy-Centrica (formerly part of Bord Gáis) announce a profit of €32m for the first six months of this year.

Bord Gáis Energy’s strong contribution to its parent group may help shield it from a culling of more than 6,000 employees from Centrica’s global workforce, which it announced yesterday.

The head of Irish Water’s parent company, Ervia (formerly Bord Gáis), has confirmed he is to "divest" himself of more than 400,000 shares in a company which makes money from installing water meters — but insisted everything he had done is "above board".

People’s lives are being put at risk from illegal tampering with gas meters in a bid to save on fuel bills, according to Bord Gáis Networks safety personnel.