Irish electricity prices were the eighth most expensive in Europe in 2024, according to research from the Economic and Social Research Institute.
Irish prices would have been the highest in the continent were it not for VAT reductions and energy credits introduced by the government to shield consumers from rising costs.
ESRI senior research officer Dr Muireann Lynch said: “While interventions such as energy credits have alleviated much of the burden for Irish consumers, Irish electricity prices have been among the most expensive in Europe during the 2018–2024 period of analysis.”
The ESRI said that network costs paid by consumers had risen in recent years to pay for the purchase of emergency electricity generation.
It said that future network investments would also increase costs to consumers.
It added that the regulator for the electricity sector, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, had predicted that annual cost may rise by between €59 to €106 by 2029 and 2030.
It said that recent rises in these network charges were small in comparison to fuel price increases.
The ESRI’s research showed that Irish electricity prices tended to track natural gas prices.
It said while many countries has reduced their reliance on gas-fired generation Ireland has been less able to diversify from gas fired generation.
It said that renewables provided protection against fuel price volatility.