As the Dutch government continues to work towards introducing a cap on gas and electricity prices, this week has seen many of the major energy companies in the Netherlands announce their new tariffs that will come into effect on October 1 - and some are raising their rates by over 50 percent.
Essent made headlines this week when it was revealed that the company was raising gas prices by more than 30 percent, to 1,99 euros per cubic metre, and electricity prices by more than 50 percent, to 0,44 euros per kilowatt hour. But Essent isn’t the only company to significantly increase rates: Vattenfall customers will soon be paying 2,02 euros per cubic metre of gas and 0,44 euros per kilowatt hour of electricity.
Data acquired by NOS from price comparison platforms Independer and Gaslicht.com reveals that energy prices will be rising sharply at various providers from October 1. From next month, customers at Greenchoice and Eneco will be paying over 3 euros per cubic metre of gas. Greenchoice also has some of the highest electricity prices, with customers paying a variable rate of over 1 euro per kilowatt hour of electricity from October.
As was confirmed on Prinsjesdag, the government is planning to cap energy prices from November 1, although they are yet to announce what the cap will be. The cabinet expects that low to middle-income households will benefit the most from the price cap - although they still advise families and individuals to do what they can to reduce their energy consumption throughout the winter.
While the exact rates of the price cap remain unknown, insiders from The Hague report that the rates will probably be set at 1,50 euros per cubic meter of gas and 0,70 euros per kilowatt hour of electricity. If these are correct, then October will see millions of customers paying rates that exceed the government’s imminent price cap.