EDF Energy is to cut gas prices by five per cent following a fall in the price of wholesale gas.
In November the energy supplier raised gas prices by 15.4 per cent, blaming an increase in the wholesale price - the amount it pays for gas.
But now EDF Energy, one of the UK's big six energy firms, has announced it is cutting gas prices following a 9.2 per cent fall in the wholesale price.
The average annual bill for dual fuel customers - where you take gas and electricity from the same firm - will fall by £41 to £1,203*.
The announcement comes after speculation that Centrica, which owns British Gas, was considering reducing household energy bills by one tenth.
Smaller energy firms Co-operative Energy and Ovo have both already announced plans to cut gas prices by 3 per cent and 5 per cent respectively.
'Transparent' pricing
Vincent de Rivaz, chief executive of EDF Energy, said customers want "fair, clear and transparent prices" more than anything else.
"We know they want action rather than words.
"That is why we are the first major supplier to announce a cut and were the last to increase prices."
Cuts welcomed
Adam Scorer, director of policy at industry watchdog Consumer Focus, said the price cut was overdue but welcome.
"EDF Energy is the first of the major suppliers to reduce prices and the others will need to respond.
"The cut is not enormous given the scale of increases last year but it creates some important momentum in the market.
"It is now up to the rest of the big six to compete and consumers will expect to see price come down across the board."
Customer dissatisfaction
This announcement comes on the day that an annual energy customer satisfaction survey by consumer champions Which? saw EDF Energy placed second from bottom of the six largest gas and electricity suppliers.
Fewer than half (43 per cent) of EDF's customers claimed to be satisfied with the service the firm offered or were likely to recommend the company to others.
This comes after an updated billing system prompted a rise in customer complaints.
Pressure on other suppliers
Richard Lloyd, executive director at Which?, said: "This gas price cut will be welcome news for millions of consumers with already squeezed household budgets.
"But it follows a hike of 15 per cent last November.
"Now the pressure is on for the rest of the major suppliers to follow suit.
"But as our survey today shows, there remain huge problems with customer service in energy as well as high prices."
*Figures from Consumer Focus. Average annual UK bill paying on receipt of bill, based on a medium energy user which is defined by energy regulator Ofgem as using 16,500 units of gas and 3,300 units of electricity a year.
