The electricity bill brings more than one of us crazy, we no longer know what to do to get a few euros off it. That is why the other day I was delighted when I heard on the news that the electricity companies were going to return the money paid in excess by the users. However, as is often said, Joy does not last long in the house of the poor, since it seems that not all users are entitled to this refund. Do you want to know if you are one of the lucky ones?
What does the new electricity pricing consist of and how does it work?
On April 1, the law entered into force. new electricity pricing linked to the wholesale market. With this new type of pricing, a forecast is made of how much electricity will be consumed in each hour of the following day, for each hour a price will be indicated that will appear published the day before on the website of the Red Eléctrica de España and that will be the price that will be applied to the electricity that we consume during that day. In this way, the user will be able to know at what times electricity will be cheaper and plan its consumption.
In other words, imagine that you are looking at the weather man/woman who tells you that it is likely to rain tomorrow and shows you a table of the chances of rain at different times of the day. You are planning to go out in the afternoon, so depending on the probability of rain, you will take your umbrella or not.
The same will happen with electricity, selecting the PVPC link in the left column that appears on the website of the Spanish Electricity Networkwe can see the price that electricity will have at each moment to know at what time it is convenient for us to connect the devices that consume the most to obtain greater savings.
Nevertheless not all users will be able to plan their consumption based on the price of electricity, only those who have a digital counter can do it. To those who still have old accountant (the vast majority), a pre-established criterion of consumption will be applied to them and it will not matter what time they spend more or less light. Electric companies have until 2019 to renew the meters and make them all digital.
Definitely, If your meter is not digital, do not bother looking for what hours the electricity will be cheaper since it is not going to do you any good, your company will decide at what times you are going to pay more for the electricity you consume and at what times you will pay less.
Which users will be affected by the new electricity pricing?
The new electricity pricing It will only apply to users who previously had the regulated rate (also called TUR). To find out if you had the regulated rate, you will have to check on your bill that it contracted power is less than 10 KW.
In addition, the electricity companies that offered the TUR were called Last Resort Marketers (now they will be called reference marketers) and are the following:
- Endesa Energy XXI, SL
- Iberdrola Marketing of Last Resort, SAU
- Gas Natural SUR, SDG, SA
- HC-Naturgás Last Resort Marketer, SA
- E.ON Marketer of Last Resort, SL
If you don’t have the official rate, it means that you are in the free market and you will continue to pay for electricity what is stated in your contract, without being affected by the regularization planned by the Ministry.
How can I know if I am entitled to a refund on my electricity bill?
To date, electricity companies have to do two refunds: one for the first quarter of the year and another for the month of April.
During the first quarter of the year the difference between the provisional price established by the Government and the real cost of the energy consumed was 51%.
On the other hand, although the new rate came into force on April 1, the Government gave the marketers a period of three months to adapt their systems. During this adaptation period, energy has been billed at a provisional rate, so the regularization also applies to the month of April.
So, Only users who had contracted the regulated rate (TUR) during the first quarter of the year and who now have the official rate or the Small Consumer Voluntary Price (PVPC), will be the ones who have the right to regularize their bills the corresponding refund.
How much will I get back?
The National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) has concluded that users are entitled to a refund of 2.3 cents for each KW/h they consumed during the first quarter of the year. Marketers have until August 31 to make this return.
On the other hand, the OCU estimates that for a home with a contracted power of 4.6 KW and 3,500 KWh of consumption, the return will be around €40.
Ultimately, what only users who have the regulated rate or PVPC they will be happy to see how their electricity bill is reduced in the coming months thanks to the returns that the marketers have to make. The rest (those who are in the free market) will continue throwing our hands in our heads every time the electricity bill arrives.
