Fixed price electricity and gas offers are once again very topical. Between 2022 and 2023, choosing a tariff capable of guaranteeing a fixed cost for at least 12 months was an almost impossible mission. The energy crisis has brought the prices of energy raw materials to record values, with a particularly unstable market. For suppliers, offering blocked tariffs was a very risky choice and, for this reason, they have essentially disappeared but, above all, they were very inconvenient. The market, however, has changed profoundly over the last few months. The decline in wholesale prices, both for electricity and gas, allows suppliers to return to proposing fixed-price offers that are convenient and capable of representing a concrete alternative to indexed ones. The confirmation comes from new data from the Segugio.it Observatory.
The analysis by Segugio.it, which considers the best price of each month of the fixed price offers available on the comparator, confirms that in March the best fixed price tariff, both for electricity and gas, returned to levels of early 2022. For consumers there is therefore the concrete possibility of choosing an affordable fixed rate and locking in the price.
The best fixed electricity tariff in March 2024 allows the cost of energy to be blocked at €0.11/kWh, a unit cost 45% lower than in the same month of 2023. If we broaden the comparison, the price is -30 % compared to the same month of 2022 and much lower than the maximum peak reached in October 2022 (0.41 €/kWh). However, still far from the pre-crisis period when the energy cost of fixed price tariffs was around €0.08/kWh.
Similar scenario for gas: the best fixed gas rate in March 2024 has a raw material cost of €0.43/Smc, -45% lower than the best price in March 2023. Broadening the comparison, the price is -32% compared to 2022 and much lower than the maximum peak reached in October 2022 (1.89 €/Smc). However, in the pre-crisis period, by choosing the best fixed price tariff, gas cost less than €0.30/Smc.
A good time to freeze the price of electricity and gas? Paolo Benazzi, Utilities Managing Director of Segugio.it, underlines: “For a certain period the fixed offers disappeared, or the few that survived allowed the price to be blocked at very high levels. They have been back for a few months now, but until recently, locking in the price was an expensive luxury for consumers. In fact, the price was set 30-40% higher than wholesale prices, even forecast for the coming year. Today, for the first time since the crisis, fixed price tariffs are approaching variable ones and the price can be locked at advantageous levels. It can be an excellent moment, especially for those who consume a lot, to set the price per kilowatt hour or per cubic meter and protect themselves from any surprises for at least a year.”
