Minister Ribera urges companies to “accelerate” the change in the regulated gas tariff, without ruling out changes proposed by the sector to solve the bottleneck
At the gates of a winter in which the weather will determine energy consumption in Spain, autumn is coming to an end with lower demand for gas and electricity from homes and businesses compared to the past five years. In concrete terms, gas consumption fell by 19% to 21% between the months of August and November. In the case of electricity, this consumption reduction amounted to 7%, according to the latest data from the Third Vice President and Minister for Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera.
This lower energy demand in Spain – which contrasts with a remarkable increase in gas and electricity exports to France, using the Iberian mechanism – is not only explained by the impact of the austerity measures in the plan that the government will announce after the summer. Ribera has admitted that it is “difficult” to attribute this drop solely to the state plan. On the one hand, it is explained by the records of less icy temperatures, as a result of which we have not had to use so much gas and electricity in these weeks. In addition, part of the industry has adjusted production with efficiency measures.
With this data, the Spanish gas system has enough reserves to withstand some 55 days of national consumption if the supply of gas in the European Union were to be cut off abruptly. An “unlikely event”, as Teresa Ribera has pointed out.
In addition, the application of the Iberian ceiling, the reduction of taxes and charges, as well as austerity measures, have resulted in the average electricity bill being 34% lower than it would have been in recent months if the government had implemented these measures.
Ribera, who is working to reform the regulated electricity tariff (PVPC), has asked energy companies for “agility” to handle the massive changes in the regulated gas tariff (TUR). Some measures requested by the industry to speed up this process are even described as “valuable”. Among other things, that the companies of the free market can make this change.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
