The deviceassistance to help businesses pay their energy bills it needs to be perfected in the next few days but the idea was discontinued this weekend. The option chosen by the government is to pay part of the companies’ energy bills directly and to offset part of the additional cost of purchasing electricity. Beware, within a certain limit, however. The discount should be between 10 and 25% of the companies’ energy bills.
As negotiations within the European Union on the maximum gas price are not progressing, the government wants to move quickly and respond to employers’ organizations that fear cascading failures due to soaring energy prices.
The central point of the system chosen by the executive is that it is much simpler than the existing aid: companies will not have to file files with Bercy. The government will pay the money to suppliers such as EDF, Engie, etc. Support will be deducted directly from company invoices.
A tariff shield such as for families will not be put in place because some companies – those with fewer than ten employees who make less than three million in turnover – already benefit from it, but above all because a tariff shield on all companies would be too expensive for companies. public finances. At the weekend Agnès Pannier-Runacher, Minister for Energy Transition and Bruno Le Maire, Minister of Economy, received business executives and the speech was very clear: for families the tariff shield already costs 100 billion euros on three years. Impossible to do the same for companies. This would not be sustainable for public finances. Bercy’s anxiety is to fall back on whatever it takes.
This business aid will cost around ten billion euros, according to Bercy. Seven will be financed by the European contribution on energies and three billion will come from the fund. Corporate executives are waiting for the details, the reimbursement thresholds, but they say they are relieved. François Asselin, president of the CPME told us on Sunday 23 October: “Limit the breakup, at least for the foreseeable future.”
