Energy user overcharge refunds
Deputy Carthy said electricity customers overcharged under the large energy user rebalancing scheme should be repaid. The Taoiseach said he did not know if refunds were due, suggested the scheme was essentially a bulk-buy discount, and promised to check with the Minister.
The Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, informed the Committee on Environment and Climate Action today that electricity customers who were overcharged as a result of the large energy user rebalancing scheme will be compensated. This was a scandalous scheme that forced ordinary households to subsidise some of the biggest and wealthiest companies not only in Ireland but across the world. Last week, when I raised this with the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, he defended the scheme and refused to answer my request that the excess charges be repaid. I therefore welcome the statement from the CRU, but I ask the Taoiseach to inform us as to when customers will get their money back. Will that money come from the companies that benefited from their overcharging and not from taxpayers?
Comment on this
I honestly do not know what the situation with refunds is, if there are to be any, so I will have to defer to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, on that. My understanding is that this was essentially like a bulk-buy discount. Somebody who buys things in large volumes will often get a lower price for them. That is not unusual. I was not aware that there would be any sort of rebate-----
Comment on this
Somebody else is paying for it: ordinary households.