ELECTRICITY charges in the North West are set to fall by an average of £15 a year following Norweb's decision to reduce its tariffs by 5.75pct from today.

It means that more than two million customers of Norweb, part of United Utilities, will now have the country's second lowest electricity bills.

The tariff cut follows the recent announcement by Professor Steven Littlechild, the industry's regulator, that the Fossil Fuel Levy is to be reduced to 3.7pc from November 1.

Unlike most other regional electricity companies, Norweb has decided to pass on this saving to its customers a month ahead of the reduced levy.

The reduction is worth £15.39 to the average domestic customer in a full year, says the company.

The latest cut means the average Norweb domestic customer will be paying less for electricity in real terms than in 1991.

Bob Spedding, Norweb's customer services director, said that in the six years since privatisation, domestic electricity customers in the Norweb area have paid less than customers in any other region.

"The savings since 1990 equate to £240 compared with what the same customers would have paid in the most expensive region," said Mr Spedding.

The average bill for a domestic customer will now be £252 a year.

This is £50 or 20pc less than the same customer would pay in the electricity region with the most expensive prices.

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