Skip to main content

Maximum resale price of electricity

Utility Regulator logo

The Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation


Direction and public notice concerning the maximum resale prices for electricity and gas

Following consultation, and in pursuance of its powers under Article 47 (2) of the Electricity (Northern Ireland) Order 1992 ("Electricity Order") and Article 24 (2) of the Gas (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 ("Gas Order"), the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation hereby gives notice (pursuant to the Electricity Order) and directs (pursuant to the Gas Order):

THAT, subject to the exclusion below, a pass-through rule shall apply which shall govern and fix the maximum resale prices at which (i) electricity supplied to a consumer's premises by an authorised electricity supplier ("qualifying electricity") and (ii) gas supplied to a consumer's premises by an authorised gas supplier ("qualifying gas"), may be resold. In effect, the pass-through rule provides that the re-sale unit price shall be the same unit price as that paid by the original consumer for the relevant qualifying electricity or qualifying gas as the case may be.

EXCLUSION: The pass-through rule shall not apply to the resale of qualifying electricity to any person from a public Electric Vehicle charging point for use by an electric motor vehicle.

For the purposes of the Exclusion above:

"public Electric Vehicle charging point" means any equipment, apparatus or appliance which is:

  1. accessible and made available for use by any person; and
  2. used for, or for the purposes connected with the supply of electricity solely to provide motive force for an electric motor vehicle; and 
  3. "electric motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle that uses electric drive to power or assist in the propulsion of the motor vehicle.

By virtue of Article 47 (4) of the Electricity Order and Article 24 (5) of the Gas Order, if any person (such as a landlord or caravan-park owner for example) resells qualifying electricity or qualifying gas at a price which exceeds those prices as determined and fixed under this Direction and Public Notice, the amount of the excess shall be recoverable by the person to whom the qualifying electricity or qualifying gas was resold. This paragraph does not apply where the exclusion applicable to the reselling of qualifying electricity applies.

This Notice and Direction replaces the previous Notice and Direction of 6 September 2007 and shall have effect from 31 March 2020.


Jenny Pyper

Chief Executive

Authorised on behalf of the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation

31 March 2020