“We want to prevent prices from being kept artificially high and taxpayers’ money being used to pay for corporate profits,” said Energy Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens), justifying the halving of the electricity price ceiling. At the same time, she calls on electricity customers to look for cheaper providers in the coming months.
This is the argument of the turquoise green government like Wifo boss Gabriel Felbermayr, who has been calling for halving the subsidy for some time. “On the one hand, this should make the brake on the electricity price cheaper for the Ministry of Finance, and on the other hand, it should ensure that there are more incentives for households to switch electricity suppliers if the 15 cents is not enough to bring the electricity price to a bearable level,” Felbermayr told Ö1 last week.
In concrete terms, from July 1, the subsidy for electricity customers will apply from a maximum of 30 cents to a maximum of 15 cents per kWh for the first 2,900 kWh of electricity consumed. You then pay the provider’s market price as usual. The upper limit of the energy price up to which the brake works drops from 40 to 25 cents.
Electricity prices have fallen since the brake was introduced
Households with more than three people also receive a subsidy of 52.50 euros per person per year; for low-income households, 75 percent of network costs are waived. The electricity price has fallen sharply since the introduction of the brake in the autumn of 2022, but not yet at pre-crisis levels. According to the Ministry of Finance, the brake on the electricity price has so far cost 900 million euros, 600 million euros has been budgeted for 2024 and a further 500 million euros would be available if necessary.
Finance Minister Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) was pleased on Wednesday in the press foyer after the Council of Ministers that a constitutionally possible solution had been found for skimming windfalls from energy companies after the relevant EU regulations expired and that they had also been extended. To date, approximately 255 million euros have been raised here; Much less than the European Commission initially assumed, but with investments in renewable energy sources.
Fundamental criticism from the opposition on the brake on electricity prices
The FPÖ renewed its criticism of the electricity price brake and profit skimming and instead called again for a reduction in energy consumption taxes, the abolition of the CO₂ tax, the end of sanctions against Russia and the of the merit order principle. The electricity price ceiling was also the wrong benchmark for the SPÖ: they would have preferred an energy price ceiling like in Germany. The reduction in the cost cap will now make electricity more expensive for households, which places an additional burden on people.
The trade union (ÖGB) took a similar approach. From the perspective of the Chamber of Labor (AK), the reduction of the electricity cost brake comes too early; she would have liked to see a transition period for consumers.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
