Companies that failed to conclude long-term contracts in recent months and ended up at spot prices are having a difficult time. At the moment, however, they are better off than those with fixation. Spot prices are falling significantly. The price of gas on the Dutch stock exchange is now around 60 euros per megawatt hour. Even at the end of the year it was 150 euros.
“They are below the government ceiling of one hundred euros per megawatt. Therefore, it appears to be a good decision at the moment,” noted Radomil Gold, the vice-chairman of the board of directors of the kaolin. The company needs a large amount of gas and its problems started when its supplier quit a year and a half ago.
According to Gold, the situation is also facilitated by the energy price ceiling. Thanks to it, companies know the maximum amount they will pay and can better plan their investments. “It is also good news for the banks and all our partners in that we know how much the commodity will cost,” he summarized.
Some companies have also started offering contracts with prices below the government ceiling, but fixed, and quite long – for three years. According to experts, this can be disadvantageous for consumers, which is also admitted by the energy companies themselves. “We always point out that the product has its own risks. That the price will not subsequently decrease,” commented Jan Zápotočný, vice-chairman of the board of directors of the E-ON company. He added that despite this, hundreds of clients decided to sign contracts with fixed prices below the government ceiling.
According to Jiří Gavor, director of the Association of Independent Energy Suppliers, it is only in the last quarter that suppliers can be expected to really start “competing for customers like in the old days”. So far, there are only more people who are “considering other offers under the price ceiling”, but with a three-year fixation.
Households cannot yet take advantage of the fact that energy is relatively cheap on the exchanges. Spot prices are only available to business customers. And that is as long as the capping of energy prices is in effect – that is, until the end of this year.
