How to save money on the new electricity bill in Spain
The new electricity bill in Spain
Since 1 June, there has been a change in the structure of your new electricity bill in Spain.
The new electricity bill model for regulated market electricity consumers in Spain (PVPC, Voluntary Price for Small Consumers), some 10.7 million users, came into force on 1 June 2021 and aims to encourage energy saving, efficiency, self-consumption and the deployment of electric vehicles.
There will be three-time bands, and only the most efficient consumers will be able to reduce the cost of their bill.
Thus, the new tariff structure applies price discrimination to all consumers and three-time brackets in the new electricity bill. Specifically, the current six tariffs for domestic consumers will become a single tariff. Supplies connected to voltage networks of no more than 1 kV with a contracted power equal to or less than 15 kW (this includes most customers and almost all households) will have the 2.0 TD toll.
What is to be done?
The domestic consumer does not have to choose a toll or charge, as until now, but will have to adapt their contracted power and consumption patterns to the new periods. By default, their power in each period is the one they currently have contracted and they will be able to change it twice this year.
In addition, domestic consumers will be able to contract two powers: one for peak and off-peak periods and another for the off-peak period. This will significantly benefit users with electric cars, as they can recharge more quickly without having to contract another supply point.
Given this scenario, we suggest that you look for the best offer.
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What are the time slots for the new electricity bill?
There are three time slots: peak, flat and off-peak.
1 ) The most expensive (peak hour) will be in the morning, between 10am and 2pm, and in the evening between 6pm and 10pm.
2 ) The average price (flat hour, FLAT HOUR) will be in the morning from 8 to 10 a.m., in the afternoon from 2 to 6 p.m. and in the evening from 10 to 12 midnight.
3 ) The cheapest (off-peak time, VALLEY TIME) will be between 0 and 8 hours. All these timetables will be applied in the Peninsula, Balearic and Canary Islands, according to the CNMC. In Ceuta and Melilla, the periods begin and end one hour later, except in the case of the flat period between 23:00 and 24:00.
Thus, if a washing machine is put on at 9 a.m., it will be cheaper than if it is done at peak time. In addition, off-peak periods are Saturdays, Sundays, 6 January and national holidays defined as such in the official calendar of the year. Both replaceable holidays and holidays without a fixed date are excluded.
What will happen to the price of the electricity supply contract?
For consumers on the regulated electricity market (PVPC), the marketers will apply the new tolls and hourly rates automatically. On the other hand, if you are on the free market, the supplier will have to adapt the contract price to reflect the variation of the regulated component of the new electricity bill, but it can decide how to do so. The supplier must communicate these changes to the consumer sufficiently in advance and clearly and transparently.
The Spanish electricity system operator, Red Eléctrica de España (REE), will publish the electricity prices for the day on the eSios website and the redOS app at 20:15 every day. These prices will be applied to the energy term (real hourly consumption) of the bill for PVPC consumers.
What are electricity tolls?
The tolls paid by all consumers include a series of system costs and represent approximately half of the electricity bill. On the one hand, they include the distribution and transmission costs of the system. To this are added other charges (payments related to other regulated aspects of the system), which until now were included as tolls, but which the EU has made it compulsory to differentiate.
The rest of the bill is made up of taxes (around 20%) and the energy consumed (between 30% and 40%).
How to save with the new electricity bill?
Provided that the supplier adapts its contracts to the new tolls and charges, consumers can save on their new electricity bill by adjusting the power at peak and off-peak times to the new structure of tolls and charges; by avoiding switching on several appliances at the same time; if they have night-time accumulators, increasing the contracted power in the off-peak period to charge in a shorter period; or by charging their electric cars at night.
According to the CNMC, avoiding switching on all appliances at the same time could induce savings of between 200 and 300 euros per year for a consumer with high electrical equipment, if they adjust the contracted power at peak.
Competition also points out that the iron is one of the most energy-consuming appliances and one of the easiest to move. Thus, it points out that ironing in the flat period instead of the peak period would mean a saving of 38 euros per year.
Why are they making this change?
The Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge stresses that the aim of this tariff structure is to encourage the displacement of electricity consumption from peak electricity demand hours to hours when the transmission and distribution networks are less saturated, which will reduce the need for new investment in these infrastructures.
Consumers are the ones who pay for this type of infrastructure through their electricity bills and with this method they will face lower costs. In fact, those who shift their consumption to flat and off-peak hours, those with the lowest demand, will achieve greater savings on their bill.
However, the new electricity bill will maintain a fixed part of the tariffs in order to achieve a balance with other energy policy priorities, according to the portfolio headed by Teresa Ribera. The incentive for the electrification of energy end uses is maintained.
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