SHARE
COPY LINK

ENERGY

Electricity prices to rise for every fifth household

Every fifth German household will face rising electricity prices in the coming weeks, a consumer report said on Tuesday.

Electricity prices to rise for every fifth household
Photo: DPA

At least 74 power companies including Eon and enviaM plan to hiking prices in April and May for about eight million households, according to online consumer portal Top Tarif.

Prices are expected to increase by about six percent.

Head of the Federal Network Agency (BnetzA) Matthias Kurth has in turn demanded that the country’s four main energy utilities find a way to work together to reduce prices by May 31. His agency estimated that even more providers – up to 300 of the country’s total 900 – would increase their rates on April 1.

He said it was wrong for these companies to force customers into to taking a share of the costs for developing sustainable energy sources.

“The long-term procurement strategy was false for countless energy companies,” he said, explaining that for too long many bought electricity at an inflated price, but this did not justify passing the cost on to consumers.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

BUSINESS

France’s EDF hails €10billion profit, despite huge UK nuclear charge

French energy giant EDF has unveiled net profit of €10billion and cut its massive debt by increasing nuclear production after problems forced some plants offline.

France's EDF hails €10billion profit, despite huge UK nuclear charge

EDF hailed an “exceptional” year after its loss of €17.9billion in 2022.

Sales slipped 2.6 percent to €139.7billion , but the group managed to slice debt by €10billion euros to €54.4billion.

EDF said however that it had booked a €12.9 billion depreciation linked to difficulties at its Hinkley Point nuclear plant in Britain.

The charge includes €11.2 billion for Hinkley Point assets and €1.7billion at its British subsidiary, EDF Energy, the group explained.

EDF announced last month a fresh delay and additional costs for the giant project hit by repeated cost overruns.

“The year was marked by many events, in particular by the recovery of production and the company’s mobilisation around production recovery,” CEO Luc Remont told reporters.

EDF put its strong showing down to a strong operational performance, notably a significant increase in nuclear generation in France at a time of historically high prices.

That followed a drop in nuclear output in France in 2022. The group had to deal with stress corrosion problems at some reactors while also facing government orders to limit price rises.

The French reactors last year produced around 320.4 TWh, in the upper range of expectations.

Nuclear production had slid back in 2022 to 279 TWh, its lowest level in three decades, because of the corrosion problems and maintenance changes after
the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hinkley Point C is one of a small number of European Pressurised Reactors (EPRs) worldwide, an EDF-led design that has been plagued by cost overruns
running into billions of euros and years of construction delays.

SHOW COMMENTS