Major reduction in February power rates
Greece’s power suppliers have announced significantly reduced electricity tariffs for February, with Public Power Corporation (PPC) saying that its rate is down 57-64% compared to January.
The final consumer price depends on the amount of the electricity consumption subsidy announced every month by the Environment and Energy Ministry. The subsidy is set at a level that ensures that the final price of PPC – which as the country’s largest power supplier is the benchmark – will be maintained at the level of 15-16 cents per kilowatt-hour.
PPC said its February rates are 19.9 cents/KWh for the first 500 KWh, compared to 48.9 cents/KWh in January; 21.1 cents/KWh for consumption over 500/KWh (down from 50.1 cents/KWh); and 15.8 cents/KWh for the night-time rate (from 44.8 cents/KWh).
The reduced tariffs are attributed to the significant drop in prices on the Hellenic Energy Exchange, where last week wholesale prices fell for the first time in a year-and-a-half, reaching 58 euros per megawatt-hour, compared to €195/MWh earlier this month.
The developments also reflect the reduced energy demand so far both in Greece and Europe-wide due to the mild winter, the assurance of natural gas sufficiency and the drop in gas prices on the Dutch stock exchange.
