UK's Ecotricity, Good Energy outdo larger rivals with gas bill cuts

(Adds Good Energy gas price cut)

LONDON, Feb 12 (Reuters) - British green energy suppliers Ecotricity and Good Energy said on Friday they will reduce retail gas bills by around 7 percent from April (LSE: 0N69.L - news) 1, making steeper cuts than their larger rivals.

A 57 percent drop in wholesale gas prices since this time last year due to oversupply and weak demand means energy suppliers are able to lower costs for consumers.

Ecotricity said it would cut tariffs by 7 percent, while Good Energy's customers will see an average 7.2 percent fall in prices.

These reductions are larger than those announced by Britain's six largest energy suppliers, including Centrica (LSE: CNA.L - news) 's British Gas and SSE (Other OTC: SSEZF - news) , over the past weeks, averaging 5.2 percent.

Smaller companies have different hedging strategies to their large rivals as they handle lower volumes. They are therefore better placed to take advantage of falls in wholesale prices more quickly than large players.

British households will not benefit from a decline in market electricity prices because their suppliers are facing rising costs, such as green energy subsidies, which they say cancel out lower wholesale prices. (Reporting by Karolin Schaps and Nina Chestney; editing by Jason Neely and David Evans)