The prices of electricity and gas, especially at the beginning of this year, fell a lot. And this led to the fact that energy suppliers are also going down with their price lists. Gradually, almost everyone announces further price reductions. However, novelties in the form of monthly fixations, which are offered by only a few traders, are also starting to appear. These are similar to spot prices, i.e. current prices on the market, which can now only be used by households with “smart” electricity meters. Monthly fixes can often be advantageous, but what should you look out for?
The spot price of electricity is now around 74 euros (approx. 1,850 crowns) per MWh, electricity with delivery next year is 98 euros (approx. 2,450 crowns) per MWh. This is a decrease of more than 40 percent compared to last year. The price of gas fell even more, by up to 50 percent year-on-year, which is 33 euros (825 crowns) per MWh.
Spot prices for household customers have been prohibited since the beginning of last year, when energy prices were capped. “It is prohibited to negotiate with the consumer a contract for combined electricity or gas supply services with a method of price determination directly dependent on changes in the price of electricity or gas on short-term organized markets and related to the course of hourly electricity consumption or daily gas consumption,” the Ministry of Industry and Trade stated at the time.
Spot products can therefore currently only be used by those who have continuous electricity metering. This means that they have an electricity meter that allows continuous recording of data on the amount of electricity produced and taken in quarter-hour periods and enables remote reading. It is typically used by households with, for example, photovoltaics that have recorded electricity consumption during the day.
It is true that spot tariffs are quite a “wild investment” because in the event that prices on the market rise rapidly, the customer is not protected against this in any way. Given that most customers cannot use spot prices, some merchants have come up with special tariffs that are negotiated only for a month. The price is therefore fixed for one month, but the next month may be at completely different values.
Low prices for those in the know
Monthly fixes currently represent better prices compared to long-term contracts. It is necessary to take into account that the market prices of electricity in spot tariffs are written into the final prices for customers faster than classic tariffs for an indefinite period or several-year fixations. Therefore, this type of commitment is suitable for those who know how to navigate the energy market and don’t mind changing suppliers often and following more favorable offers.
For monthly fixations, the price is derived from the spot prices of the previous month, and the notice period is typically one month. Centropol now offers such a fixation, where people could contract electricity for May for 2,488 crowns per MWh including VAT. “Flexible electricity supply product with a price fixed for 1 month. Month-to-month changes take place according to the development of the market price, and we will inform you about all of them in advance by e-mail,” states Centropol on the website. For example, Lama Energy or Tedom Energie now also offer a monthly tariff.
ČEZ and other suppliers are gradually making electricity and gas supplies cheaper. ČEZ will first reduce energy prices for 1.7 million existing customers with an indefinite contract from the summer. First, gas will be cheaper by roughly 17 percent in June, then electricity by nine percent in July. From May, fixed products are also discounted.
The price for the supply of gas without fixing at ČEZ to households will drop from June 1 to 1,479 crowns per MWh without VAT. The price of electricity without fixation will be reduced from the beginning of July in the most common D02 rate to 3,595 crowns per MWh without VAT. As for fixed products, from May they will reduce the price of electricity with a two-year commitment to an average of 3,124 crowns per MWh without VAT and the price of gas to an average of 1,298 crowns per MWh without VAT. Offers with a three-year contract will also be discounted.
Other suppliers have also been gradually reducing their price lists since the beginning of this year. For example, since May, E.ON has reduced gas prices for about 150,000 customers by between 13 and 21 percent. In addition, the company also discounted its fixed tariffs for new customers. For example, innogy also discounted fixed products by hundreds of crowns this year, which recently confirmed that it is planning to make further price adjustments. In April, the company epet also reduced the price of electricity and gas, and since March, Pražská plynárenská has reduced the price of gas by 6.1 percent. Some suppliers, on the contrary, are waiting for discounting, among other reasons, because they bought the products ahead of time at higher prices.
