Illustrative stock photo (source: TASR)
The price of electricity for households will go up slightly next year. The Regulatory Office for Network Industries (ÚRSO) has decided to increase it on average by 2.71 percent.
“It is an average increase of maximal possible adjustment which traders can make,” said ÚRSO head Ľubomír Jahnátek, as quoted by the Sme daily.
An average household will pay several cents more for electricity per month. In the DD1 category with a low consumption (small flats with a consumption below 1,000 kWH), where about 70 percent of the market resides, the average price will increase by 13 cents a month, while in the DD2 category (standard households with a consumption of about 2,300 kWh) the rise will be slightly higher: 51 cents, or 2.08 percent.
The final bill will depend on the supplier to the household and the average electricity consumption.
“We haven’t received any price decisions yet, and we’ll comment on them only after a detailed analysis,” said spokesperson for Západoslovenská Energetika energy distributor, Michaela Dobošová, as quoted by Sme.
The other energy firms provided similar statements.
The regulated companies had been asking for much higher prices, raising them by nearly 14 percent. Finally, the ÚRSO approved a lower increase without explaining why, Sme reported.
More for gas and heat as well
Electricity prices for households were expected to rise to $40 per MWh, corresponding with a rise on the global markets. This is the result of the increase in the price of brown coal and emission permissions, analyst Michal Šnobr, who cooperates with J&T Banka, told Sme.
Meanwhile, households will also pay more for natural gas and heat next year, though the rise will be smaller. Gas, for example, will go up by only 0.38 percent on average.
The reason is that only four suppliers, all of them alternative, asked for the increase. The main impact however is on the state-run gas utility SPP that has not requested a price increase yet, Sme wrote.
As for heating, the final average price will go up by 1 percent in 2018. Of this, the variable component will increase by 1 percent and the fixed one by 0.9 percent, Jahnátek said.
