Electricity and water charges are to increase by 2.2 per cent, Manx Utilities has announced.

The new tariffs come into effect from April 1.

Chairman of the MUA, Alf Cannan MHK said: 'I am well aware of the financial pressures that exist for many consumers on the Isle of Man and we are doing our very best to keep prices at the lowest levels possible.

'As many of our customers know we have a high level of debt servicing costs which impact on our ability to react as quickly as we would like to changing gas prices but on the plus side I can assure our customers that our reliability levels are well in advance of our competitors in neighbouring jurisdictions.

'I should also point out that our electricity prices were frozen for three consecutive years leading up to 2014/15 and that Manx Utilities is ahead of its merger business plan. We will be monitoring very carefully the impact of the lower gas and oil prices on the business and I hope this can be reflected in future tariffs if feasible.'

It means the average household will pay an extra ?24 per year for electricity. The sewerage rate agreed by Tynwald also comes into effect on April 1.

Manx Utilities says it understands the vital role that the manufacturing and commercial sectors play in supporting the island and that industrial electricity tariffs remain lower than they were four years ago in real terms.

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