NPOWER has announced a cut in gas prices.

The company said its average tariff will come down by 5.1 per cent from February 16.

Bosses say it will benefit about 1.3 million customers.

The move comes after British Gas revealed it will lower prices by five per cent from February 27, Scottish Power said it will cut costs by 4.8 per cent from February 20, and Eon introduced a 3.5 per cent fall with immediate effect.

The reduction by NPower, which is part of German utility company RWE, means that on average the company's annual standard domestic gas tariff is now £667 per year, down from £702.

The industry-wide reduction in bills reflects the falling cost of energy on wholesale markets, although companies have come under fire for being too slow in passing on the savings.

Figures from industry regulator Ofgem show wholesale gas prices are down 19 per cent on last winter.

Paul Massara, NPower's chief executive, said: "This announcement means we can get the benefits we are seeing in the wholesale market to our customers pockets as soon as possible.

"We have balanced this wholesale price fall against increases in the other costs we are charged. If there are further falls in wholesale prices, we will keep these under review to see if we can cut further."

SSE and EDF are the remaining two companies out of the Big Six energu firms still to announce price cuts.