The price of electricity drops today. The more than two million customers linked to the regulated electricity rate once again see how the price of electricity falls with the arrival of the weekend. During the day this Saturday, users will enjoy hours at zero euros and several with a negative price, despite this they must be especially careful with the most expensive hours to save on the electricity bill. Experts recommend avoiding the hours with the highest prices to use the appliances that consume the most such as the washing machine or dishwasher.
Regulated tariff customers linked to the wholesale market will pay an average of 20.59 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) today, 28.88% less compared to this Friday. Setting the washing machine, for example, to the cheapest hours, as well as the oven or the appliances that consume the most, is a formula that experts always recommend to save on the electricity bill.
The most expensive and cheapest hours of electricity this Saturday
The maximum price, of 44 euros/MWh, will be recorded between 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., while the minimum price will be -0.41 euros and will occur between 4:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m., according to data from the Operator of the Iberian Energy Market (OMIE).
The price of electricity today by hour.
From 00:00 to 01:00 hours: 38.86 euros/MWhFrom 01:00 to 02:00 hours: 35.01 euros/MWhFrom 02:00 to 03:00 hours: 35 euros/MWhFrom 03:00 to 04:00 hours: 35.01 euros/MWhFrom 04:00 to 05:00 hours: 35.01 euros/MWhFrom 05:00 to 06:00 hours: 35.01 euros/MWh From 06:00 to 07:00 hours: 35.01 euros/MWhFrom 07:00 to 08:00 hours: 35.01 euros/MWhFrom 08:00 to 09:00 hours: 28.07 euros/MWhFrom 09:00 to 10:00 hours: 6.4 euros/MWhFrom 10:00 to 11:00 hours: 0 euros/MWhFrom 11:00 to 12:00 hours: 0 euros/MWhFrom 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.: 0 euros/MWhFrom 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.: 0 euros/MWhFrom 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.: -0.01 euros/MWhFrom 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. :00 hours: -0.25 euros/MWhFrom 16:00 to 17:00 hours: -0.41 euros/MWhFrom 17:00 to 18:00 hours: 0 euros/MWhFrom 18:00 to 7:00 p.m.: 3.25 euros/MWhFrom 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.: 11.1 euros/MWh From 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.: 35 euros/MWhFrom 9:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. :00 hours: 44 euros/MWhFrom 10:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.: 41.63 euros/MWhFrom 11:00 p.m. to 12:00 p.m.: 41.46 euros/MWh
If the price of electricity is negative, do I have discounts on the bill?
It must be clarified that the fact that in the ‘pool’ hours are recorded at zero euros, does not mean that electricity is free for a consumer covered by the regulated tariff (PVPC), since they have to assume a series of regulated costs, such as transportation and distribution networks, among others. Will we then have discounts on the invoice? This is not the case for several reasons, but the first thing to understand is that electricity can never be free. To be clear, the first thing is to know which concepts appear on the electricity bill. According to the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU), only 11% of clients do so.
According to experts, first of all you have to know that the hourly price that the wholesale electricity market, the so-called ‘pool’, publishes each day only affects consumers who have the regulated price (PVPC) or an indexed price. On the other hand, it must also be taken into account that in order to have an impact on consumer savings, these prices would have to be more continuous over time, “but we can verify that the price of PVPC has not registered large variations on average in recent years.” days”.
Three appliances that increase your electricity bill
When we buy new appliances, it is important to take into account three fundamental aspects: their energy efficiency, using them correctly (some even have savings modes) and making sure that their consumption adapts to our electricity bill. However, there are some appliances that generally consume more electricity than others.
The dishwasher, although it is not an appliance present in every home, is one of those that requires the highest electricity consumption. According to OCU calculations, it can consume up to 246 kWh per year, which represents approximately 7% of total energy consumption and translates into up to 74 additional euros on the annual electricity bill. The same happens with the washing machine, which can consume up to 255 kWh per year, that is, about 77 euros extra on the annual bill. Finally, and logically, the refrigerator, which has an average consumption of 662 kWh per year, which means an increase of approximately 199 euros in the annual rate in the case of the PVPC.
March, one of the months with the cheapest electricity.
Last March already stood out for presenting one of the lowest average pool prices in history, with an average of €20/MWh. This figure represents half of the average price recorded in February and a decrease of 77.5% compared to March 2022, when the price stood at €89.6/MWh.
Changes in VAT on electricity
After registering an average of less than €45/MWh in February, below the ceiling set in the Royal Decree on emergencies, electricity temporarily recovered its Value Added Tax (VAT) of 21% since March, a measure that has been will continue during the month of April.
The last Council of Ministers in 2022 approved that the VAT on electricity would go from 5% to 10% and that this rate would be maintained until the end of 2024, as long as MWh prices in the wholesale market remained above €45/MWh. If the wholesale price were below this level in the calendar month prior to the last billing day, the VAT would become 21%. Only households with a social bonus are exempt from this increase, keeping their VAT at 10% throughout 2024.
New method of calculating the PVPC
It is important to highlight that the ‘pool’ does not accurately represent the final import in the price of electricity for a consumer covered by the regulated tariff. With the entry into force of the new year, a new method of calculating the Voluntary Price for Small Consumers (PVPC) was adopted, which incorporates a basket of prices in the medium and long term to avoid strong oscillations, without losing price references to Short term that encourages savings and efficient consumption. Through this new system, the proportion of linkage with the pool price will be progressively reduced, incorporating references from the futures markets. Thus, these will represent 25% in 2024, 40% in 2025 and 55% from 2026.
