Initially, the electricity and gas price brakes did not reach consumers at all.
But now the instrument is having an effect.
Energy costs are falling.
Heidelberg – At the latest since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, the prices for gas, electricity and the like have been unstoppable in Germany.
A wide variety of instruments have been tried out by the government - right up to the famous double boom by Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, which now finally seems to be getting through to the public in the form of the gas and electricity price brake.
According to the comparison portal “Verivox” from Heidelberg, consumer spending on gas, electricity and even fuel fell significantly in the first quarter of 2023.
The energy price brake works: Consumers pay less for gas, electricity & Co.
As the comparison portal announced on Saturday, the annualized expenditure for heating, electricity and fuel fell by an average of 18 percent from January to March 2023.
For comparison: in the previous eight quarters, costs had consistently increased.
The ADAC also recently reported extremely low prices for petrol and diesel.
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The gas price brake works: consumers in Germany pay significantly less for energy in the first quarter of 2023.
© Hauke-Christian Dittrich/dpa
But it is not only the state electricity and gas price brake that seems to be having a clear effect on consumers, as it is said.
A significant relaxation on the raw materials markets is also responsible for the drop in energy costs.
It looked completely different at the beginning of the year.
At that time, the drastic drop in energy prices on the stock exchanges did not seem to reach consumers.
That is now changing more and more.
Commodity markets are relaxing: Without the electricity and gas price brake, costs would be 8 percent higher
According to Verivox, the energy costs of a model household in the 4th quarter of 2022 were still an extrapolated 7163 euros per year.
In the first three months of 2023, the same amount of energy cost 5889 euros per year.
The model household assumed by Verivox has an annual heating requirement of 20,000 kilowatt hours, an electricity consumption of 4000 kilowatt hours and an annual mileage of 13,300 kilometers.
When calculating the heating costs, it was taken into account that in Germany more heating systems are heated with gas than with oil.
"With the receding fear of supply bottlenecks, wholesale prices for energy have fallen continuously in recent months," explained Verivox energy expert Thorsten Storck.
As a result, many energy suppliers lowered their prices.
Households would also have benefited from government energy price brakes.
According to Verivox, without the gas and electricity price brakes, the annual energy costs for a model household in the first quarter of 2023 would be 6604 euros and thus 8 percent below the costs in the 4th quarter of 2022. (dpa/jon
)
List of rubrics: © Hauke-Christian Dittrich/dpa