Spain and Portugal may temporarily act against high energy costs with a price ceiling. The measure approved by the European Commission will allow countries to cut consumer electricity prices, which have risen sharply as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, said EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager. Until the end of May 2023, both countries can jointly pay almost 8.5 billion euros in subsidies to electricity producers.
The fees are calculated on the basis of the price difference between the market price for natural gas and an average ceiling of EUR 48.8 per megawatt hour. The Commission has concluded that the measure complies with EU State aid rules.
In March, the issue was discussed long and hard at an EU summit. Finally, there was a political commitment for Spain and Portugal to take special measures against the high energy prices. At the time, countries such as Germany and the Netherlands rejected such market intervention.
Source: Krone
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