European
Electricity prices for Irish industry are third highest in EU and sixth highest for consumers; Irish household prices are 46% higher than UK
By Finfacts Team
Jul 14, 2006, 12:35

On average, electricity prices (all taxes included) for households1 in the EU25 rose by 4.6% between January 2005 and January 2006, while prices (excluding VAT) for industry1 increased by 15.5% over the same period. Over a longer time period, household and industrial electricity prices in the EU15 rose in total by 9% and 31% respectively between January 2000 and January 2006.

Printer-friendly page from Finfacts Ireland Business News - Click for the News Main Page - A service of the Finfacts Ireland Business and Finance Portal

Eurozone countries in blue

Ireland has the third highest prices for industrial users and sixth highest for consumers. Irish household prices are 46% higher than UK

Price changes between January 2005 and January 2006 varied significantly between Member States. For households, the largest price rises were observed in Cyprus (+31.4%), Malta (+23.3%) and the United Kingdom (+14.2%), while prices remained stable in Latvia and Lithuania and fell in Belgium (-2.6%) and Austria (-5.2%).

Prices for industry increased by more than a quarter between January 2005 and January 2006 in Cyprus (+38.4%), the United Kingdom (+36.2%), Sweden (+30.5%) and Belgium (+25.0%), while prices remained stable in France, Latvia, Lithuania and Malta and fell in Finland (-1.7%) and Slovakia (-18.8%).

These figures are published2 by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Union.

Across the EU25, electricity prices in euro varied by one to three for households and for industry

In absolute values, household electricity prices were highest in January 2006 in Denmark (23.62 euro per 100 kWh), followed by Italy (21.08), the Netherlands (20.87) and Germany (18.32). The lowest prices were observed in Greece (7.01), Lithuania (7.18), Estonia (7.31) and Latvia (8.29).

When adjusted for purchasing power, household electricity prices in Greece (8.01 PPS3 per 100 kWh) remained the cheapest, followed by the United Kingdom (9.05), Finland (9.38) and France (10.92), while the highest prices were recorded in Slovakia (24.48), Italy (20.23), Poland (20.05) and the Netherlands (19.15).

The share of taxation in household electricity prices varied greatly between Member States, ranging from around 5% in Malta, the United Kingdom and Portugal to more than 40% in Denmark (58%) and the Netherlands (42%).

Industrial electricity prices were highest in Italy (12.08 euro per 100 kWh), Cyprus (11.36) and Ireland (10.11), and lowest in the Baltic Member States, Latvia (4.09), Lithuania (4.98) and Estonia (5.11).

However, when adjusted for purchasing power, Hungary (12.13 PPS per 100 kWh) and Cyprus (11.92) recorded the highest industrial electricity prices, and Finland (4.90) and Sweden (4.98) the lowest.

Electricity prices per 100 kWh, incl. all taxes, for standard household consumer 3 500 kWh/year


 
Jan 2006
(nat. currency)
% increase
Jan 2006/
Jan 2005
Jan 2006
(euro)
Jan 2006
(PPS)
% taxes
EU25
14.16
+4.6
14.16
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Belgium
14.42
-2.6
14.42
13.33
22.1
Czech Republic
283.00
+7.6
9.85
15.81
15.8
Denmark
176.25
+4.0
23.62
17.17
57.8
Germany
18.32
+2.6
18.32
16.65
25.0
Estonia
114.40
+7.8
7.31
11.78
15.2
Greece
7.01
+1.9
7.01
8.01
8.3
Spain
11.47
+4.6
11.47
11.95
18.0
France
12.05
+0.9
12.05
10.92
24.9
Ireland
14.90
+3.8
14.90
11.95
13.8
Italy
21.08
+7.0
21.08
20.23
26.6
Cyprus
8.21
+31.4
14.31
15.01
14.4
Latvia
5.77
0.0
8.29
15.37
15.3
Lithuania
24.80
0.0
7.18
13.77
15.2
Luxembourg
16.03
+8.5
16.03
13.97
13.3
Hungary
26.95
+2.7
10.75
17.14
16.7
Malta
4.07
+23.3
9.49
13.26
4.7
Netherlands
20.87
+7.3
20.87
19.15
42.2
Austria
13.40
-5.2
13.40
12.47
33.3
Poland
45.45
+4.7
11.90
20.05
22.4
Portugal
14.10
+2.1
14.10
16.30
5.0
Slovenia
2 512.00
+1.4
10.49
13.71
16.7
Slovakia
543.00
+5.2
14.48
24.48
16.0
Finland
10.78
+2.0
10.78
9.38
25.0
Sweden
133.59
+5.7
14.35
12.06
39.0
United Kingdom
7.00
+14.2
10.20
9.05
4.8

Electricity prices per 100 kWh, excl. VAT, for standard industrial consumer 2 000 MWh/year


 
Jan 2006
(nat. currency)
% increase
Jan 2006/Jan 2005
Jan 2006
(euro)
Jan 2006
(PPS)
EU25
8.63
+15.5
8.63
 

 
 
 
 
 
Belgium
9.69
+25.0
9.69
8.96
Czech Republic
210.00
+15.4
7.31
11.73
Denmark
59.76
+12.4
8.01
5.82
Germany
9.94
+10.1
9.94
9.04
Estonia
7.99
+8.3
5.11
8.23
Greece
6.68
+3.6
6.68
7.63
Spain
7.57
+5.0
7.57
7.88
France
5.78
0.0
5.78
5.24
Ireland
10.11
+8.7
10.11
8.11
Italy
12.08
+10.5
12.08
11.59
Cyprus
6.52
+38.4
11.36
11.92
Latvia
2.85
0.0
4.09
7.58
Lithuania
17.20
-0.1
4.98
9.55
Luxembourg
8.95
+5.2
8.95
7.80
Hungary
1 907.00
+9.2
7.61
12.13
Malta
3.05
0.0
7.11
9.93
Netherlands
9.57
+6.5
9.57
8.78
Austria
8.63
+4.4
8.63
8.03
Poland
24.19
+6.8
6.33
10.67
Portugal
8.17
+14.6
8.17
9.45
Slovenia
1 559.00
+6.4
6.51
8.51
Slovakia
220.00
-18.8
5.87
9.92
Finland
5.63
-1.7
5.63
4.90
Sweden
55.20
+30.5
5.93
4.98
United Kingdom
5.64
+36.2
8.22
7.29

1. The final price charged to electricity customers will depend on the structure of electricity tariffs and contracts which normally contain a number of factors, including fixed charges and unit prices that vary according to the amount of electricity and the time of day it is consumed, as well as, for industrial consumers, the maximum demand required and the degree of interruptibility written into the supply contract.

The household prices presented here are based on a household consuming 3 500 kWh of electricity annually, of which
1 300 kWh at night.

The industrial prices presented here are based on a medium sized industrial consumer on a non-interruptible contract with a maximum demand of 500 kW and using 2 000 MWh of electricity annually. Prices for industry include taxes except value-added tax (VAT), as this is deductible for industry in many countries.

These prices are weighted by national household and industrial electricity consumption respectively to give the EU averages.

Percentage changes in prices at Member State level are based on prices in national currencies, while comparisons between countries are based on prices in euros, converted at the exchange rates of January 2006.

2. Eurostat, Statistics in Focus, Environment and Energy, 11/2006 "Electricity prices for EU households and industrial consumers on 1 January 2006" which is available free of charge in PDF format on the Eurostat website.

3. The Purchasing Power Standard (PPS) is an artificial common reference currency unit that eliminates price level differences between countries. Thus one PPS buys the same volume of goods/services in all countries.



© Copyright 2007 by Finfacts.com