From October onwards, gas customers will be faced with further surcharges in addition to the gas surcharge to save important importers. A model household with an annual consumption of 20,000 kilowatt hours from October for control energy and gas storage tank filling with seven percent VAT can expect additional costs of almost 135 euros per year.
The levies are in addition to the already published gas procurement levy (“gas levy”) of 2.419 cents (excluding VAT) per kilowatt hour. For the model household, it means almost 518 euros in additional costs per year at seven percent VAT.
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From October 1, gas suppliers will have to pay 0.57 cents for every kilowatt hour of natural gas consumed by households and small companies for so-called balancing energy, as the company Trading Hub Europe (THE) announced on Thursday in Ratingen. For large companies, the surcharge is 0.39 cents per kilowatt hour. “These surcharges are a regular part of the costs of the gas suppliers and thus of the gas prices for end consumers,” said the municipal utility association VKU. VAT is not yet included in the stated amounts. For a model household with an annual consumption of 20,000 kilowatt hours, the levy with a VAT rate of seven percent means additional costs of 121.98 euros.
Balancing energy, i.e. gas, is used to keep the gas network stable. The control energy levy has been in existence for several years. It is reassessed every year. It is currently zero. According to THE, the main reason for the increase is the sharp rise in wholesale gas prices.
The gas storage levy is new. Her height was also released on Thursday. It is 0.059 cents per kilowatt hour. With an annual consumption of 20,000 kilowatt hours, it causes additional costs of 12.63 euros with seven percent VAT. The gas storage surcharge is intended to compensate THE for the costs incurred to ensure security of supply, for example for gas purchases. The company published further levy amounts on Thursday, but these are not passed on to all gas customers.
The storage allocation is necessary, emphasized VKU boss Ingbert Liebing. “The fuller our storage facilities, the better our starting point for security of supply in winter,” he said. Unfortunately, Stadtwerke would have to pass on the gas storage and gas procurement levy. In relation to the general price increases on the markets, however, the surcharges made up the smaller proportion, he emphasized.
