Campaigners have met with power giant SSE over the 2p per unit surcharge imposed on households in the Highlands and islands.
Families in the north of Scotland have to pay an additional 2p per unit more than elsewhere as all electricity suppliers face different costs for transporting electricity across the grid in different parts of Great Britain.
It means a Western Isles household pays around 15% more than a family in Glasgow using the same amount of electricity.
SSE wants these transport costs to be flattened out so that there is one standard charge for every customer across Great Britain.
Reforms require regulatory change and SSE said it is keen that this happens as soon as possible.
The delegation included cllr Angus McCormack, John Maciver of Hebridean Housing Partnership, Donnie Mackay from Skye and Lochalsh Housing Association and Di Alexander from Lochaber Housing Association.
Angus McCormack of the Western Isles Poverty Action Group said: “It is ridiculous that in an area which actually produces clean electricity that people are genuinely living in hardship and not being able to properly heat their homes.
For a company that made £1.5bn pounds of profit last year to effectively wash their hands of this is unacceptable. We would ask SSE to take this matter seriously and do something from their own vast resources for their customers in the Highlands and Islands.”
A SSE spokesperson said “SSE discussed the extensive work it’s carried out to make the case for national pricing with Ofgem, DECC, the Scottish Government and the Competition and Markets Authority.
“This is an industry-
SSE under pressure to cut 2p surcharge
26 February 2015