The government will make an important decision today. It's about electricity prices
Today (Tuesday, May 7) there will be a government meeting, at which one of the main topics will be electricity prices in the second half of 2024.
The next government meeting will be held today (May 7). The ministers are to discuss, among other things, the draft law on energy vouchers. Thus, they will decide how much Poles will pay for electricity in the second half of 2024. What exactly are they planning?
Energy voucher and price freeze
Let us recall that the current government initially decided to freeze electricity prices only for the first half of 2024. Thanks to this, households pay a maximum of PLN 412 net per MWh, but up to consumption of 1,500 kWh. Above this ceiling, higher prices apply.
These rules are valid only until June 30, but the government has a plan for the second half of the year. This is what he will deal with at today's meeting, which will be held in the building of the Silesian Provincial Office. The Energy Voucher Act assumes, among other things, freezing prices again, but at PLN 500 per MWh, which will be slightly more expensive than in the first half of the year.
In addition, the government's plan assumes the payment of one-off energy vouchers to those most in need. The additional payment may range from PLN 300 to PLN 1,200 depending on the number of people in the household. The voucher will only be paid if the specified income limit per person is not exceeded.
Why high electricity prices?
Extremely high electricity prices in Poland result primarily from unprofitable mines, high coal prices, which are higher than in other European countries, and the lack of reserves of gas power plants with decreasing prices of this raw material. Although current electricity prices in Poland are not the highest in Europe, after calculating them according to purchasing power, we are at the very forefront of the Old Continent. Only Latvia, Italy, the Czech Republic and Germany are ahead of us.
Many people may also be surprised that current wholesale electricity prices are lower than market prices. This is due to the fact that PGE, Enea, Energa and Tauron mostly bought energy last year, when the rates were much higher.
