Energia announces 10.9% electricity price hike as households warned of ‘new normal’ for bills

Bonkers.ie warns energy prices will never return to levels seen before the war in Ukraine.

Households have been warned to brace for a “new normal” of significant hikes to energy bills this winter, as the Government continues to rule out one-off support measures in the budget.

Energia has become the latest utility company to announce hikes, with electricity prices going up by 10.9% and smart meter electricity prices by 12.1% from next month.

The increases will add an average of €205 a year to household bills.

The energy supplier pinned the blame on increasing system operator and network charges, which have had a “significant impact on our current customer price structures, making this price change now unavoidable”.

Commentator Daragh Cassidy, head of communications at the price comparison website Bonkers.ie, said it was a “pretty hefty increase”.

“But it wasn’t unexpected,” he said.

“Although wholesale energy prices have reduced hugely since the height of the energy crisis in 2002, they still remain high.

“For example, wholesale electricity prices remain around 80% to 90% above the level they were at before the war in Ukraine broke out.

“It’s similar for gas, and it’s looking increasingly likely that they’ll never return close to pre-war levels.”

Mr Cassidy said, on top of this, the cost of the upkeep of the electricity grid continues to rise.

He pointed to moves by the energy regulator, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, to hike grid fees — adding €100 to household bills last year, with another €30 announced for 2026.

“All the other suppliers in the market are faced with the same situation, so many are likely to follow suit by the end of autumn,” Mr Cassidy added.

“Unfortunately, the high prices we’re now paying for our energy look like the new normal.”

Rise in arrears

The move comes after the regulator warned earlier this month that thousands more households could fall into arrears on their energy bills this winter, as the numbers are already “trending at historically high levels”.

Speaking prior to the Energia announcement, Tánaiste Simon Harris said there is a need to “move away” from giving households one-off payments in the annual budget.

In recent budgets, energy credits for all households have helped to ease the burden of rising bills during winter.

The Fine Gael leader said “help is coming” on the cost of living in the budget but added that one-off measures are “not a good way to run a country”.

Speaking at the Fine Gael think-in in Westmeath, Mr Harris said: “We’ve got to move away from this kind of one-off ‘will I get, won’t I get?’

“That’s no way for a family to plan, no way for a business to plan.”

Pressed on whether he accepted that families had already factored such measures into their financial planning, Mr Harris said: “There’s probably pangs of anxiety when people hear, ‘oh, the one-off measures aren’t going to be there’.

“So, let me assure people that, as we frame this budget, we will, of course, be looking to do things to help them with their cost of living.

“Help is on the way, there will be measures to assist them.

“But what we want to do is make sure they’re permanent, sustainable measures, not this idea of every year a family having to turn on the budget and see, ‘will I be getting a double payment?’.

“This idea of, ‘they’re going to throw a bit of money at this year, and maybe it’ll be there next year’ is not a good way to run a country.”

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His comments were criticised by Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald.

“It’s a body blow for households under huge pressure to pay runaway electricity bills,” Ms McDonald said.

“We won’t stand for this. This Government needs to get real and do its job.

“It’s time to end the rip-off, get costs under control, and support workers and families in the budget.”