Electricity bills down by 20% under protected regime. The gap with those who have moved to the free market is widening

Sharp drop in electricity bill costs, under the protected market regime, for the April-June quarter. Rates drop by almost 20% (-19.8%), according to what Arera, the sector regulatory authority, communicates. The protected regime will end on June 30th (with the exception of vulnerable customers), therefore this is the latest tariff update developed by Arera. In terms of final effects, spending for the typical family in the rolling year (from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024) will be around 662 eurosmoving closer to levels prior to the energy crises and marking a -47.7% compared to the equivalent 12 months of the previous year (1 July 2022 – 30 June 2023), when the price of energy reached its maximum peaks. As of 31 December 2023, almost 73% of domestic customers had chosen an offer in the free market, therefore, non-vulnerable domestic customers served under Greater Protection amounted to approximately 4.5 million.

In detail of the individual components in the bill, the final price for the typical family is thus 20.24 euro cents per kWh, including taxes, compared to 25.24 euro cents per kWh in the previous quarter. The change of -19.8% is substantially linked to overall decrease in spending on energy (-22.5%) counterbalanced by increase in general system costs (+2.72%). However, the regulated network tariffs (transport and meter management) remain unchanged. The price of gas (also used to fuel power plants), which has returned to normal values also thanks to a mild winter and well-stocked storage, has had a significant impact.

“An expected drop and yet another demonstration, if it were still needed, that the protected market plays a key role to reflect the true market price and, therefore, in this case, intercept the price reductions first and force the free market to adapt, even if with a considerable delay”, he states Marco Vignola, vice president of the National Consumers Union. “According to the estimates of prices per kilowatt hour announced yesterday by the president of Arera, Besseghini, in 2024 who is in the free category they will pay on average 135 euros more than those who remained in the protected category. A chasm!” attacks Vignola. “The drop in electricity tariffs is excellent news for consumers in the protected market, but Arera and the Government must now commit to overcoming the critical issues that will arise from next July 1stthat is, when the May protection regime for electricity ends,” he states Assoutients in a note.