Electricity and gas price brake: Experts explain how much money you can save in the future

Created: 04/11/2022, 07:00

By: Anne Hund

What savings should the planned price brakes on electricity and gas bring for singles, couples and families?

experts explain it.

The federal and state governments have settled their dispute over the financing and details of many relief measures.

What does this mean for energy costs?

In addition to taking over the December discount on the gas bill, the gas price for a certain consumption is to be capped in the coming year - from January for industry, for private customers from March, as the German Press Agency (dpa) reported on the results of the federal-state summit .

When will the gas price brake take effect?

According to the dpa, the federal states were not able to assert themselves by closing the "winter gap" between December and March and by applying a price brake for private customers as early as January.

After all, however, they would have received the commitment from the federal government that implementation should be aimed for in February.

The gas price brake for gas and heat will come into force as planned in March 2023, also reported

(as of November 2nd) on the occasion of the results.

"For 80 percent of the previous year's consumption, the gas should cost 12 cents per kilowatt hour.

With the heat to 9.5 cents per kilowatt hour," says the report.

The previous year's consumption is the "annual consumption forecast on which the down payment for September 2022 was based".

The price brake for gas and electricity should relieve many consumers in the future.

© Lutz Wallroth/Imago

What should the electricity price brake look like?

The planned electricity price brake, on the other hand, should “have a relieving effect on January 1, 2023”, according to the dpa decision by the federal and state governments.

Here, too, the countries pushed for more speed.

The beginning is planned for January, as well as

describes

A basic quota of 80 percent of previous consumption for a gross price of 40 cents per kilowatt hour should be made available for households and small companies.

The portal also quotes at the point from the corresponding decision: "The difference between the market price to be paid and the cap will be offset monthly by the suppliers directly with the discount," it says.

According to the Tagesschau, the measures are to be approved in the cabinet on November 18th.

Gas price brake for gas and heat - what does that mean for consumers?

The comparison portal Verivox used a few examples to calculate in advance what the planned relief could mean for consumers.

Regarding the planned gas price brake, Verivox stated, among other things, on request:

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• According to the Verivox consumer price index for gas, the nationwide gas price in November 2022 averaged 17.79 cents/kWh.

  Based on this, the monthly discount for a single person with a gas consumption of 5,000 kWh is currently an average of 74 euros, couples (12,000 kWh) pay 178 euros, a family with a child (18,000 kWh) pays 267 euros and a large family (20,000 kWh) is included 297 euros per month.”

• “For a family in a terraced house with an annual consumption of 20,000 kWh, the current annual costs are around 3,558 euros per year.

  If a cap of 80 percent of annual consumption to 12 cents/kWh takes effect, the total annual costs will drop by around 26 percent to 2,632 euros.

  That corresponds to a saving of around 926 euros per year.”

• "A single household with an annual consumption of 5,000 kWh would save around 232 euros, couples with an annual consumption of 12,000 kWh can expect savings of around 556 euros."

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What can the planned electricity price brake achieve?

The experts also have a few sample calculations ready for the planned electricity price brake and possible savings in this context.

Upon request, Verivox stated, among other things:

• "In November, the nationwide electricity price averaged 48.16 cents per kilowatt hour, according to the comparison portal Verivox.

  On this basis, the current annual costs for a three-person household with an annual consumption of 4,000 kWh are around 1,926 euros per year.

  If 80 percent of annual consumption were capped at 40 cents/kWh, the total annual costs would fall by around 14 percent to 1,665 euros.

  That corresponds to a saving of around 261 euros per year.”

• "A single household with an annual consumption of 1,500 kWh would save around 98 euros, couples with an annual consumption of 2,800 kWh can expect savings of around 228 euros."

Brakes or not: If the electricity price is capped at 40 cents per kilowatt hour, the electricity costs will still remain “historically high”, according to Thorsten Storck, energy expert at Verivox.

"For comparison: In 2021, the average electricity price for households was still less than 34 cents - and was still the highest in all of Europe."