Electricity price brake to start on 1 December 2022
The electricity price brake is designed to counter the current increases in electricity prices. It will be applied directly to electricity bills from 1 December 2022 onwards and will remain in force until 30 June 2024.
Individuals with an existing electricity supply contract for a metering point in their home will be able to benefit from the electricity cost brake and will receive the corresponding discount straight from their electricity supplier. The electricity price brake will reduce their next bill and future part-payments.
Support will be provided for a basic quota of up to 2,900 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per household metering point, around 80 per cent of the average consumed by domestic customers in Austria. Within this basic quota, the Federal Government will cover up to 30 per cent of the costs per kWh, meaning that the pure net energy price (comprising the commodity price, the base price and discounts) is not to exceed the pre-crisis level of 10 cents/kWh.
Given that multi-person households also face higher electricity costs, a mechanism for additional relief that takes household size into account is also being established. Households at which more than three people are listed in the Central Register (ZMR) as being primarily resident will receive an additional quota. Each additional person will be supported with a quota amounting to 350 kW/h at 30 cents, equating to extra relief of over EUR 100 per person per year. The model is currently being finalised by the Ministry of Finance, and households will be able to claim the relief before the end of next spring. Much of the processing is expected to be done automatically.
“Inflation and high energy costs are piling pressure on everyone in our country,” says Finance Minister Magnus Brunner. “This is why we in the Federal Government have already introduced numerous relief measures in recent months to support families, households and businesses at this challenging time. Even though the state is naturally not in a position to compensate for every single crisis in full and offset every price rise 1:1, it is nonetheless important to help. In early autumn, therefore, we and the energy industry decided to cushion electricity costs right where they become a burden for customers – on their electricity bills. We’ve been working flat out over the past few weeks to make this electricity price brake happen.”