Not only the heating, but also the horrendous rise in electricity costs are stirring. The price level is still historically high. Recently, however, wholesale prices have softened somewhat. In addition, the electricity price brake is supposed to come.

Above all, the massive rise in energy costs are driving inflation. But at least the price for a megawatt hour of electricity for delivery in the coming year was around 335 euros on the electricity exchange. In the past few weeks, electricity prices have fallen significantly, as have wholesale gas prices. In September, more than 500 euros per megawatt hour were still required. On a long-term average, the price per megawatt hour of electricity is between 35 and 55 euros, as determined by the comparison portal.

According to this, the electricity costs in this month for a three to four-person household with an annual consumption of 4000 kilowatt hours are on average nationwide at 1926 euros (48.16 cents/kWh). A year ago the average price was 1392 euros. The annual costs are thus 534 euros higher, which corresponds to an increase of 38 percent.

The falling wholesale prices are currently having an impact on the electricity offers for new customers. While they were often above 55 cents/kWh in September and October, they have since fallen to around 40 cents/kWh. Basic service customers are currently still benefiting from a generally lower price level. A kilowatt hour currently costs 36.93 cents. Here, however, consumers have to be prepared for significantly rising prices. So far, regional electricity suppliers have announced 313 electricity price increases by an average of 50 percent. For a three-person household with an annual consumption of 4000 kWh, this corresponds to additional costs of around 700 euros per year.

The electricity price brake planned by the federal government from January 2023 could provide relief. According to Verivox, a cap of 80 percent of annual consumption to 40 cents/kWh would reduce the total annual costs by around 14 percent to 1665 euros. This corresponds to a saving of around 261 euros per year. A single household with an annual consumption of 1500 kWh would save around 98 euros, couples with an annual consumption of 2800 kWh can expect savings of around 228 euros.

(This article was first published on Wednesday, November 23, 2022.)