According to the experts we will pay more or less depending on our consumption habits.
Starting next June 1, the new electricity bill will come into effect in Spain. This new structure, as indicated by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge "applies price discrimination to all consumers and three periods to all those who have less than 15 kW of contracted power in the case of users with PVPC" ( voluntary price for small consumers), and is expected to "promote energy saving, efficiency, self-consumption and the deployment of electric vehicles." If we translate all that into commun language it means a price increase!!
There are many of you who have asked us through our blog if this change will mean an increase or a decrease in the electricity bill. According to the experts contacted by Maldita.es, this will vary depending on the sections in which we consume electricity but we can expect a price increase for sure.
The new electricity bill presents three time sections: peak, flat and valley for domestic consumers with PVPC.
The new changes, as we have mentioned, are for tolls and what is intended is that we adapt our consumption to new schedules. The variation in tolls will cause the fixed part of the bill (contracted power) to go down a bit and the variable part (energy we consume) to rise from 8:00 to 23:59.
As a novelty, three mandatory sections are implemented for those domestic consumers who have contracted less than 15kW with PVPC, the regulated rate, and will be distributed as follows:
• Peak period: it will be between 10 am and 2 pm and 6 pm and 10 pm and the cost of tolls and charges will be higher.
• Flat period: it will be between 8 and 10 hours, between 14 and 18 hours and between 22 and 24 hours and the cost will be intermediate.
• Off-peak period: it will be between midnight and 8 in the morning and will apply during all hours of weekends and holidays. It will be the cheapest section.
Ceuta and Melilla, meanwhile, have their own schedule, and the sections will start one hour later than on the peninsula. Something that will also happen in the Balearic and Canary Islands, except at off-peak time, which remains the same as in the rest.
For large consumers, that is, those who have contracted a power greater than 15 kW, new sections are also established that also vary according to the season of the year, These will have six electricity prices per day, both for energy and for contracted power.
As we say, the schedule of each period will vary according to the month of the year. The twelve months will be grouped into four seasons: high, medium high, medium and low. Likewise, Ceuta and Melilla will have their own seasons, as will the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands, which will also each have their own and the peninsula, will have another.
We can hire two different powers depending on our needs
Another novelty is that domestic consumers will be able to contract two different powers: one for the peak and flat periods and another for the off-peak period. However, as the ministry's press release indicates, "if the consumer does not request this change, the current power contracted in both periods will be applied automatically."
For example, as indicated by the portfolio directed by Teresa Ribera, “those consumers who have higher power needs in the valley period, such as electric vehicle users who wish to charge their car or motorcycle at night at home, will be able to benefit from hire a higher power for the off-peak period and maintain its usual power in the peak and flat sections, avoiding paying the extra cost of that extra power during all hours of the day ”.
So, what will it depend on that domestic consumers pay more or less in the new electricity bill?
"The price of energy as such does not vary", explains Laura Cardenal, communication manager of the energy rate comparator Selectra, "varies the price at which the person consumes it depending on the time of day and the day of week". Therefore, it indicates that the price of our bill "will depend more than ever and in a very notable way on our consumption habits", for which he insists that "those who do not adjust these habits will see the bill become more expensive".
In short, if we do not want to pay more, she Cardenal provides us with a series of tips such as:
• Move our electricity consumption to flat hours (8am to 10am / 2pm to 6pm / 10pm to midnight) and especially valley hours, which are the cheapest (from 12pm to 8am).
• Carry out a power study to see if it is convenient for us to raise or lower it, since now it will also have two sections (tip and valley) and we can hire two different powers or the same power, as we want.
• Maintain the usual power during off-peak hours, “at least for the moment”, since, in this way, “we can, on the one hand, shift consumption from peak (expensive) hours to those cheaper hours and, at the same time You will not lose quality of life, being able to use different electrical appliances during the weekend without having to suffer in case your leads jump ”.
We must understand well “which are the time periods in which electricity is cheaper and what consumptions do we make that have a great expense . In this sense, household appliances such as the washing machine, the dishwasher, the dryer, etc. Let's put them in those cheaper time sections, such as the valley section and if not, in the plain.
On the other hand, you have to know what things save and what not, that is, if I have LED bulbs trying to turn them off is not really relevant since they have a very low consumption. Likewise, we can also have savings if we leave the washing machines for the weekend.
The main advantage of these changes that take effect from June 1 is that they promote savings. In order not to overpay in the new electricity bill it is necessary that, as we have explained, we change consumption habits, according to the time zones, since, above all, in the first residences, where people consume a lot of energy the variable part of the bill that of consumption, is more important than the fixed part, the contracted power. So if we do not adapt, there may be an increase in our bill.
Consumption at rush hour (from 10am to 2pm and from 6pm to 10pm) may be up to three times more expensive than consumption at the valley rate, since the estimates are about 7 cents kWh in valley and 22 cents per kWh in peak so it will be convenient for us to take this into account when starting the electrical appliances.
Will these changes affect those who have contracted electricity at fixed prices?
The market for electricity marketers in Spain, as we have already explained, is divided into two: reference marketers and free market.
In summary, the reference clients are those that operate in the regulated market in Spain, that is, they sell energy at a regulated tariff set by the Government, called PVPC (voluntary price for small consumers).
The free companies, for their part, have total freedom to offer different prices, offers and promotional plans, length of stay or additional services, so that the consumer chooses the one that suits him best.
If you are in the regulated market (PVPC), the hourly discrimination will be applied automatically to your electricity bill. However, if you are in the free market, the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) recommends that you study "in detail the products that your electricity company offers you."
This, asks the companies that offer fixed prices so far, that it would be convenient for them to inform their clients that the adaptation process "to the new regulated concepts, and in particular to the new access tolls, will be automatic" and that it is not they will have "to carry out any procedure", that "they have the option of contracting other products and of the penalty that, in their case, it could entail", of the methodology applied to adapt their products, etc. It also recommends "that all marketers have their application offers published as of June 1 in advance, so that consumers can contrast the adaptation of the prices of their contracts."
The new changes really affect all users since it is a change in access tolls, what happens is that those of PVPC will see the changes implemented immediately, while those that are in the free market they will see it depending on their company and their specific rate.
As the change is very important, because in a few hours the price is going to triple compared to the current situation, what is going to happen is that all those fixed-price offers are going to skyrocket. The invoices, are going to be much more complex to understand than they are now and the companies are going to internalize the risks that the new rate change is going to have and, therefore, they are going to raise the price.
Although we have these rates and these tolls, in the free market a trading company can make contracts and sell energy at the same price in the three periods. So it is important that we inform ourselves of the prices that are going to apply to us, in case we have one of these contracts.
Other changes in the electricity bill for users with PVPC
The Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge also explains that there will be a new invoice format for users with PVPC in which it will be possible to see the consumption in peak, valley and plain as well as the power of both sections. However, all those who are in the free market will have to wait for the first invoice to see the changes since it depends on the companies.
According to the ministry, PVPC users will also see the content of their bill simplified "to improve their understanding" and "its length will be reduced to two pages."
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