It was said that it would intervene mechanically with the sanctioned removal of the fiscal shield. In fact, electricity bills will increase significantly this year. The gradual increase will start from February 1. Here are the reasons, amount and rate of increase for the year 2024.
To better understand the reasons for this expected increase, we have to go back to 2022 in which the tax on electricity was abolished after the implementation of the price shield. A move to help consumers cope with rising energy prices, particularly driven by the outbreak of war in Ukraine. At that time, the government took this step to reduce the price hike on household bills.
Clearly, the latter were not paying actual market prices for their consumption, as the government limited price increases through the deployed tariff shield. However, this had a significant impact on the state budget. Francois Lenglet explains to our colleagues at RTL that the “loss” in the two years 2022 and 2023 amounts to billions. This led Bursi to reinstate the electricity tax to gradually reduce this financial burden. ” Even today, the state subsidizes electricity prices by 35% », notes the source, which makes it possible to reduce the bill paid by the customer.
An increase in annual electricity bills of around 130 euros
With the reinstatement of electricity tax and the increase effective from February 1, the subsidy will come down, especially for households and small businesses that had benefited fully till then. Indeed, tax increases on kilowatt hours, which will be reviewed several times, and which ” approach 10% » Will increase the annual electricity bill for consumers by around 130 euros. This will allow the state to begin rebalancing the electricity market, which has seen its bill rise by nearly 60% since 2020.
And this is only the first adjustment, with the government’s projected expensive nuclear plan for 2037 requiring huge investment. ” In the field of nuclear reactors, the six planned EPR2 represent more than 50 billion for production (…) so it is entirely possible that in total, the cost of electricity will double in the current decade. », indicates the source.
Gas prices are also expected to increase
Gas prices are also expected to rise with tax hikes unchanged for this year. Annual bill should be “ Increase from 100 to 150 euros ” Indeed, even if, for the moment, prices follow a downward trend, these resources are necessary to guarantee the maintenance and renovation of the distribution network. That said, the number of customers is decreasing with the switch to electricity and heat pumps.
