Europe is looking for ways to save itself from rising electricity prices

High voltage power line. File photoMOSCOW, July 18Due to the shortage of gas, electricity prices in many European countries hit a historical high. What bills will Europeans now receive and how governments will try to deal with the largest energy crisis in the history of the European Union — in the material of RIA Novosti. The main economy is saving Before the crisis, Germany received 35% of all gas from the Russian Federation. About 36% of the consumption of the entire resource, in turn, falls on the industry, and the share of natural gas in electricity generation was about 13% until recently. />Poles urged to save electricity due to sanctions against RussiaOn average, a kilowatt of electricity produced from gas now costs approximately 22 euro cents/kWh (13 rubles) when purchased, which is still lower than the price of electricity produced by other methods, but exceeds last year's price four times. The increased cost of a scarce energy resource has also affected the cost of electricity in general, since the purchase price for electricity received from different sources is determined at exchange auctions. in the near future may become more expensive by 70%. If in 2021 a couple without children paid an average of 670 euros per year for 1,300 kilowatt-hours, then in 2022 this amount could rise to 939 euros, according to Business Insider. In households with four people, where consumption is about 4,000 kilowatt-hours, the cost of this item is expected to increase from 1,704 to 2,385 euros. Germany Robert Habeck said on Tuesday that nuclear energy will not help with the solution of the gas deficit, since Germany, in his opinion, has «problems with heating, not electricity.» To cope with the crisis and rising prices for electricity and energy resources, Germany is is now returning to energy sources such as coal. At the end of June, Berlin also announced the activation of the second phase of the gas emergency plan, which includes measures to save it. If a third phase is announced, the Federal Grid Agency will itself regulate who is supplied with gas, giving priority to households and their electricity and energy supply.Europe warned of the greatest energy shock without Nord Stream country's electricity. Now the cost of electricity in the country has increased on average from 8 to 50 euro cents (from 5 to 30 rubles) per kilowatt of electricity, bringing it closer to the indicators of pre-crisis Germany, although German tariffs were considered among the highest in Europe even before the energy crisis. At the moment, Austrian politicians are discussing the price ceiling, and are also looking at Spain's experience in regulating electricity prices. According to the Spanish energy company Enagas, in June of this year, 24.4% of imported gas came from the Russian Federation, which made Russia the second supplier to the kingdom after the United States. In response to the energy crisis, Madrid drew up a plan to save gas and, in agreement with the European Commission, subsidized gas-fired power plants with a surcharge on the overall price of electricity, at the same time creating a price ceiling for electricity produced from gas. Thus, Madrid stopped price growth at around 15 cents (9 rubles) per kilowatt-hour, which, even taking into account the margin, represents a significant savings compared to the situation in neighboring countries. The model also has disadvantages — first of all, this means a rather high gas consumption because the state artificially cheapens it. According to the authorities, electricity will remain available to both consumers in Spain and Portugal, which is in the same energy system with the kingdom.Media: Germany is waiting for «harsh consequences» because of the «Nord Stream»Gas electric shockGreece is among the top four EU countries with the most expensive electricity. Electricity prices, as in the case of Germany, are directly dependent on the price of natural gas, which accounts for 40 to 60% of Greece's electricity generation. Greece is not the most dependent country on Russian fuel in Europe, but still covers 40-55% of its gas needs, which is mainly used for electricity generation, through supplies from Gazprom. Natural gas prices have fluctuated above 16 cents (10 rubles) per kilowatt-hour in recent days, which has affected the overall electricity market. According to statistics, electricity in Greece from June 2021 to June 2022 has risen in price by 70.4%. Average wholesale prices in January were 23 cents (13 rubles) per kilowatt-hour, and in mid-June rose sharply to 31 cents (18 rubles). The state power company DEI is currently offering electricity to households for 24 cents/kWh (14 rubles). Despite the fact that prices are at an unprecedented level and the Greek media have called them «electroshock», the Greeks did not fail to invite the Germans to sit out the winter in Greek resorts in order to escape from inflation and the threat of electricity shortages. «In autumn and winter, we Greeks will be happy to welcome German pensioners who want to experience the Mediterranean winter with Greek hospitality, mild weather and quality services,» Greek Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias told Bild recently. Greece plans in the same way as Germany – with coal.Bloomberg: Gas in Europe has risen in price by 700 percent since the beginning of last year Coal again Poland, whose Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on July 14 instructed state enterprises to urgently buy 4.5 million tons of coal, plans to deal with the energy crisis in a similar way. This decision is primarily due to the fact that heating coal is still widely used in Poland, and electricity prices, like in other EU countries, have risen sharply. In January 2021, electricity tariffs for households in the proposal of the state oil and gas company PGNiG PLN 0.34 (in terms of 7 euro cents or 4 rubles) per kilowatt. However, already in January of this year, the price offer exceeded PLN 1, and since July prices have risen to PLN 1.39 (17 rubles) per kW. from other dealers, where electricity tariffs today are about PLN 0.42 (5 rubles) per kW gross. However, in January 2023, the government will not freeze prices, these rates will also increase significantly. In the neighboring Czech Republic, according to experts from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the price of electricity for the population at the end of the year will be 86% more expensive compared to the end of 2021, gas will increase by 59%. As in Poland, these are average prices, because everything depends on specific energy supply companies. This spring, electricity and gas prices in the Czech Republic have already increased by an average of one third, from 24 to 37%, compared to December 2021. The overall increase in electricity prices in the Czech Republic and Poland, as in all other EU countries, is associated with the price of gas. Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov previously noted that the reduction in gas supplies from the Russian Federation to a number of European countries is due to the fact that they do not return from the repair of the Siemens turbines that were used to supply gas to Nord Stream, nothing intentional there is no Russian side. According to him, these are the consequences of anti-Russian sanctions and problems that «are not connected with us.» Peskov has repeatedly said that Russia has never used gas supplies to punish anyone, but sells fuel solely in its own interests, to increase the well-being of Russians and on a commercial basis.Coal will save Europe from aggressive Russia