Phoenix gas is to announce a 17% prise rise

The company will announce on Thursday its tariff is to rise by 17%. This is on top of an increase of 30% announced in the autumn.

The company will blame the rise on the increasing price of wholesale gas.

The second rise means an average annual bill will have soared by 52%, or �200, in four months. Consumer bodies are expected to criticise the move.

BBC Northern Ireland business editor James Kerr said the company understood the rise would be "unwelcome news" for customers and it had urged them to be as energy efficient as possible.

"It has been an open secret for some time that another rise was on the way, the only question was just how much it would be," he said.