OREANDA-NEWS. SSE Airtricity, Northern Ireland's second largest electricity provider, has confirmed yesterday (03 September) that it will freeze its standard rate household electricity prices at current levels.

This follows an announcement by the Utility Regulator that there will be no change to incumbent Power NI's regulated electricity tariff.

This electricity price freeze will apply to SSE Airtricity's 160,000©ц existing household customers including those on introductory discounts as well as to new customers switching to SSE Airtricity from Power NI and other home electricity providers for the company's market leading product offerings. SSE Airtricity will continue to keep its prices under review.

SSE notes that the announcement by the Utility Regulator introduces far greater stability in the management of regulated electricity tariffs and represents a positive response by the Regulator to the views expressed by SSE Airtricity and other stakeholders that stability in prices should be delivered where possible in order to provide certainty for customers in managing their energy costs.

Last week SSE Airtricity also announced it would hold its regulated gas tariffs at current levels until April 2015 for its 119,000©ч natural gas customers in the Greater Belfast area, an effective price freeze for a period of two years since the company last changed its gas tariffs.

SSE Airtricity is Northern Ireland's second largest electricity provider supplying around 160,0001 domestic electricity customers. Of these around 100,000 are credit bill customers, while around 60,000 are keypad customers - equivalent to a 21% and 19% share of the domestic Northern Ireland electricity market respectively.

A wholly-owned subsidiary of the FTSE-listed and Scotland based SSE plc, SSE Airtricity is Northern Ireland's second largest energy provider supplying greener electricity and natural gas to a total of over 300,000 Northern Ireland homes and businesses or around 30% of the energy market.

SSE Airtricity provides electricity to 158,487 Domestic Customers in Northern Ireland. Figures quoted based on latest Retail Market Monitoring Quarterly Transparency Report Q1 2014 published by the Utility Regulator, May 2014.

SSE Airtricity provides natural gas to 118,829 Domestic and Small Industrial & Commercial customers in the Greater Belfast area. Figures quoted based on latest Retail Market Monitoring Quarterly Transparency Report Q1 2014 published by the Utility Regulator, May 2014.