Fiala: Overall energy prices in Czechia will definitely not rise by tens of percent

Overall energy prices will definitely not rise by tens of percent, Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) said today in the Chamber of Deputies in connection with the expected increase in the price of the regulated component from next year. The exception may be customers with prices fixed before the energy crisis, according to the prime minister. State-wide assistance for customers was time-limited from the outset, Fiala pointed out. With the current stabilisation of the market-based, unregulated component of energy prices, a shift to targeted assistance is now necessary, he said.

The Energy Regulatory Office will announce the final form of regulated energy prices for next year today. The office’s original proposal envisaged a year-on-year increase of 71 percent for households and 39 percent for gas. This would mean consumers paying thousands of crowns more for the regulated component of electricity next year. Fiala expects the office to revise its original proposal in the “right direction”. He noted, however, that a return to pre-crisis energy prices is not currently possible. “We cannot expect a return to the prices that applied here within a short time,” Fiala said.

The regulated component of energy prices has less impact on the overall price than the unregulated, market-based component, whose price is falling, the prime minister said. “Overall, these expenses will definitely not rise by tens of percent compared with the current level,” Fiala said. For customers with long-term fixed-price contracts that expire next year, the increase in the overall price may be higher than for other customers, he said, but it should not exceed this year’s cap. “In their case, the increase is not caused by a change in the regulated component, but by an increase in electricity prices on the European market,” the prime minister noted. For most customers, the regulatory office’s decision will have no impact on the final price, or an impact of just a few percent, he said.

Fiala also said the government is aware of the impact of higher regulated energy prices on energy-intensive industry and has held repeated talks with industry representatives. “I believe we will find a reasonable solution for these businesses,” he said. However, the government cannot help every individual company, he added.

The prime minister rejected claims that the Czech Republic has the highest energy prices among EU member states. Citing Eurostat data from this September, he said electricity prices in the Czech Republic were slightly above average and gas prices slightly below average. “Neither for electricity nor for gas was the increase in prices here anywhere near the highest in Europe, despite what many people believed,” he noted.

According to Fiala, energy prices in the Czech Republic and the country’s energy security are affected by decisions made in the past. He blamed governments that included the now-opposition ANO movement for relying on cheap Russian gas and failing to build nuclear and renewable energy sources quickly enough. “Today we are bearing the consequences,” he added.