Irish households and businesses may have one more year of lower bills as wholesale electricity falls  

There is no direct relationship between the percentage changes in the prices paid by suppliers and the bills for end-users, but "the news is positive for both households and businesses, with the trickle-down of lower power prices potentially leading to cuts in energy bills", Ms Foley said. 

For a number year after early 2025, Ms Foley said Cornwall Insight's so-called SEM Benchmark Power Price Curve predicts any further price falls paid by Irish suppliers will run at a much more gradual pace. 

That is before more wind and solar renewable sources come on the grid to replace the higher costs of running the remaining coal and oil-fired generating plants across the island.  

"The mild winter coupled with ample gas stocks in Europe have reduced the need for a gas injection over the summer to meet targets, meaning gas prices continue to fall," Ms Foley said. 

"Despite the fall, the impact of Europe's increased reliance on liquified natural gas shipments following the sanctions on imports on Russia, are expected to keep Irish prices above historic averages," she said. 

Cornwall Insight reiterated its warning that planning and other issues would likely get in the way of the Government securing its 2030 target to generate most of the electricity on the grid from renewable sources.   

"While the growth in renewables does lead to a small reduction in prices from 2028-2029, the fall in prices is tapered by increasing demand and the completion of the Celtic and MaresConnect interconnectors, which results in Ireland becoming a net exporter of electricity by the early 2030s," the consultancy said in its outlook. 

For the next few years, wholesale electricity prices are expected to trade between €90 per megawatt hour and €100/MWh, down from an average price of €106/MWh in the 2023-24 financial year just ended, it said.  

Meanwhile, the price of wholesale European gas rose sharply for the fourth day, gaining 4% to €32.50 per megawatt hour on Thursday, as fears over the Middle East conflict persist.  

Sharp rises or falls in European wholesale gas prices, if sustained, can after a delay of a few months end up in the electricity and gas bills because gas is used to generate a significant amount of electricity on the all-Ireland power grid. 

Bloomberg reported that while the European winter ended with record high gas stockpiles due to relatively mild weather and weak industrial demand, recent strikes on energy infrastructure in Ukraine and escalating tensions in the Middle East have put supply risks in focus. 

The continent lost most of its pipeline flows from Russia two years ago, and now relies on suppliers from across to globe to ship fuel. Moving energy supplies across international waters could become more difficult.