The extreme fluctuations in the energy market and the dramatic increases in wholesale electricity prices have triggered a summer alert at Maximou. Today, Kyriakos Mitsotakis will give political directives to the leadership of the Ministry of Environment and Energy in an emergency meeting at 10:00 AM to set in motion interventions that will mitigate the impact of these increases on retail prices for households and businesses.
As reported by “THEMA” on Sunday, the government awaited the first data of this week to evaluate the situation and determine if intervention is needed. The assessment was conducted, and Minister Theodoros Skylakakis raised the alarm at Maximou, leading Mr. Mitsotakis to order immediate preparatory steps for interventions in the coming days.
Meetings began yesterday, involving both Mr. Skylakakis and the Prime Minister’s Energy Advisor, Nikos Tsafos. Under this framework, decisions will be made today, as the government aims to avoid public outrage over inflated bills, especially since there is no longer the justification of the energy crisis due to the war in Ukraine.
Notably, this morning the Regulatory Authority for Energy has summoned electricity production companies one by one to explain their unit offers during July, when extreme fluctuations in daily wholesale prices occurred.
Excess Profits and Wholesale Intervention
In a brief conversation with protothema.gr yesterday, on the sidelines of an event attended by the Prime Minister, for the new bike path on the Athenian Riviera, Mr. Skylakakis did not reveal more about the pending decisions. However, given the government’s identification of excessive profits for power generation companies based on stock prices, the possibility of re-taxing “windfall profits” is on the table. According to information, the government’s focus is on the current period, from July to the end of September, though there is a window for examining profits from the beginning of the year as well.
A government source emphasized that balancing interventions for the excessive profits of companies is crucial when consumers face steep increases. Today’s government meeting seeks to determine how to relieve consumers from facing “explosive” bills after the summer holidays.
Thus, the connection between emergency taxation of power generation companies and tariff subsidies through a wholesale cap is under consideration. Instead of an extraordinary levy on companies, as with refineries that do not pass costs to consumers, a cap on each technology may be implemented. The resulting difference would fund the Energy Transition Fund, indirectly leading to subsidies.
This subsidy scheme, withdrawn at the end of last year due to falling wholesale prices, may now return, albeit temporarily, due to the new situation.
It remains to be seen how the announcements for government interventions will be scheduled, with the Prime Minister already having a planned interview tonight on SKAI’s main news bulletin.
Resolutions at the KYSEA
Immediately after the emergency meeting on the electricity issue, however, Mitsotakis will chair the regular meeting of the KYSEA. This will formally give the green light for the procurement of the F-35, on which the Pentagon has an open line with the US. In fact, the House Armed Services Committee had also given its approval a few days ago. The S-100 unmanned helicopters that will be contracted with the new frigates that the country will receive from 2025 are also expected to be passed for approval from today’s meeting.
