E.ON Romania claims that there are currently no quantities of gas available on the market at reasonable and long-term prices, so that the population’s bills will decrease from July 1, but it is not excluded that this will happen in the next period, according to Agerpres.
From July 1, the gas market will be completely liberalized, and household consumers will no longer pay regulated prices. The big suppliers, E.ON and Engie, have sent their customers offers at the prices that were in force until now, while the relevant minister, Virgil Popescu, claims that the bills should decrease by 10-15%.
Asked what were the reasons why E.ON decided to send offers to the population at the same price as before, the company’s representatives said: “The final price of natural gas for the delivery period July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021 was determined based on the costs of quantities already purchased or in underground storage warehouses, as well as the acquisition costs estimated from July 1 this year, for the remaining quantities to be purchased. What is very important is that our offer is firm, the price being stable for 12 months (unless the tariffs regulated by ANRE will change), ensuring the coverage of consumption in the cold season, when costs are much higher given the peak consumption and the obligation to store gas in warehouses.”
E.ON representatives explained that, of household consumption for a whole year, 80% is recorded in winter, the difference between summer consumption and the cold season being 1 to 6, and the gases needed to cover this peak consumption are more expensive and are usually purchased from import, at higher prices.
“The final price of gas for domestic customers includes both the cost of purchasing gas from the domestic market and the following additional costs for us: the cost of imported gas to cover peak consumption in the cold period (remember that our offer is valid one year), and also storage costs, transmission services, distribution services and supply services. Regulated tariffs for underground natural gas transmission, distribution and storage services are external costs that cannot be negotiated by our company, being established by ANRE,” according to E.ON.