Spanish Government Will Reduce Energy, Fuel And Gas Costs On March 29
Spain News
Published: 17 March 2022 13:27 CET
Spain’s Minister for the presidency, Félix Bolaños promised on Wednesday that the government would lower the cost of electricity, fuel and gas this month.
In a move to reduce the impact on consumers of the spiralling cost of energy, the government said it planned to introduce a raft of new measures to drive down prices to help consumers.
Spain’s Minister for the presidency, Félix Bolaños said that the government will lower the prices of electricity, gas and fuel on March 29.
The government plans on approving a new decree on this date in its response to the rising energy costs brought about by world events.
Bolaños didn’t go into any specifics but said that the government was currently studying a number of alternatives to make the necessary reduction in prices.
The government has said that it is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with other EU partners when they meet at the European Summit in Brussels on March 24th and 25th. However, he said that if they could not reach an agreement, Spain would adopt its own measures in response to the crisis.
"We are going to work to ensure that the consensus includes the European Union partners, and if there is no consensus, the government will also take measures.
“We are considering different ways of doing this, from state aid and taxes to capping prices and establishing a set energy price.
"Our objective is to protect families, companies, the self-employed, help those who have more difficulties due to the high price of energy," he said.
Bolaños said that meetings held on Wednesday with opposition parties including Partido Popular had been “cordial and constructive”, however, Vox had declined the invitation.
"It is a time for unity. The only enemy is Putin and the savage war he has provoked. We call on the PP and the rest of the parties so that Congress responds with unity to this emergency,” he said.
The minister acknowledged that the government was aware of “what it is costing to fill the tank, pay for electricity and keep homes warm".
Energy costs have continued to rise in Spain and other parts of Europe in recent weeks.
On March 8, Spain registered a record price in the wholesale market of €544.98/MWh, jumping €100 in just 24 hours with the highest prices between 7 and 9 pm where prices touched around €700 per Megawatt-hour.
It comes as Vice President and Minister of Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, confirmed on Thursday that she was working with Portugal on a proposal to set a maximum price for energy in the wholesale market of €180 per megawatt-hour.
She has also stressed that the government would act on its own if the EU "was not up to the task" at next week's summit.
Source
https://www.20minutos.es/noticia/4972000/0/ribera-confirma-plan-topar-energia-180-euros-dice-espana-actuara-ue-no-altura/
https://www.thelocal.es/20220317/spanish-government-vows-to-lower-energy-prices/
https://murciatoday.com/spanish_government_promises_to_lower_energy_fuel_and_gas_costs_on_march_29_1750282-a.html
Image Credit: La Moncloa Flickr
