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January 1 also brought with it the total liberalization of the electricity market. This means that Romanians no longer pay the prices set by the National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE). Home consumers are advised to compare the offers and choose accordingly.
The six million consumers who remain in the regulated market should know that they have two options: keep the old contracts and automatically pay the so-called universal service prices, which will be 13-26% higher, or enter into other contracts in the market. free.
According to Agerpres, the prices of universal service for Enel Distributie Banat’s national clients will be the ones that will increase the most, by 26%, respectively. It is followed by Enel Distribuţie Muntenia (including the capital), where electricity will increase by 23%, Enel Distribuţie Dobrogea, by 18%, Electrica Transilvania Sud and CEZ Distribuţie, by 17% each.
For Electrica Muntenia Nord customers, the price of universal service increases by 15% compared to the current regulated price, for Electrica Transilvania Nord, by 14%, and for E.ON Distribuţie, by 13%.
A survey by the Smart Energy Association showed that in early December, more than 90% of household electricity consumers were unaware that the market would be liberalized as of January 1.
Romanians are advised to choose offers on the free market.
Specialists recommend that consumers renounce the contracts they currently have and which will bring them higher bills and look for offers in the open market with better prices and conditions. They can keep their provider or choose another licensed one.
On the ANRE website there is an application that shows the available offers, depending on the data of each client.
Zoltan Nagy-Bege, vice president of ANRE, told Agerpres on Monday that energy will now be cheaper in the free market than in the universal service market, so people should enter into new free market contracts if they want prices. less.
He pointed out that the price for the competitive client and for any type of client is the competitive price of the market, and the price of the universal service should be for those who are left without a provider.
“Definitely, from now on, and that’s normal, competitive market prices will be lower than universal service prices,” Bege said.
The Minister of Energy, Virgil Popescu, recommends the same. “People should look at ANRE’s website, in the price comparison, and choose the best offer,” Popescu told Agerpres on Monday.
However, he said he would ask the Competition Council to verify whether universal service prices were not artificially increased.
In turn, Bogdan Chiriţoiu, president of the Competition Council, showed that it is very important that people enter into contracts in the competitive market, either with the current supplier or with another, in order to benefit from more advantageous conditions.
“With the liberalization of electricity supply to domestic customers, it is very important that all consumers enter into contracts in the competitive market, either with the current supplier or with another supplier. Domestic consumers who do not opt for a competitive offer will still be provided with electricity, under a universal service regime, under conditions that could be less advantageous than competitive offers, “Chiriţoiu told Agerpres.
He gave the example of gas bills, which decreased for those who signed new contracts, after the liberalization of the gas market on July 1, 2020.
What consumers need to know about the contracts they currently have
Consumers need to see if they are already in the competitive market, because this possibility has existed until now. If the invoice says “competitive market invoice”, they have nothing to do, because they are no longer in a position to automatically pay the prices of universal service, and the liberalization of January 1 has no impact on their contract, writes Agerpres. .
People also need to know that no one will be without power if they don’t sign new contracts. Furthermore, they can change their contracts at any time, and if they conclude a new contract before February 1, 2021, it will apply on January 1.
“The most important thing for consumers to know is that the continuity of the electricity supply is not threatened at any time,” said Silvia Vlasceanu, executive director of the Federation of Associations of Energy Services Companies (ACUE) of the cited source. .
“The liberalization process was completed once again, during 2018, until GEO 114/2018 appeared, which reintroduced regulated prices,” he recalled.
“Consumers will receive information from providers in January, they will see the competitive offer and they will compare it with the offer of universal service and they will see that universal service is more expensive. This is a service of last resort and should remain as is. “The purpose of liberalization is to choose a supplier that is as attractive as possible,” said the representative of the energy companies.
“What we are missing at the moment is the scheme to support vulnerable consumers and funding sources,” added Vlăsceanu.
Romania is the last country in the European Union that has not liberalized the electricity market so far. This was mandatory through European law, and Romania has requested several derogations over the years, this being the last possible deadline to complete the process.
Publisher: AA
