After last year's electricity and gas price shocks, the situation for household customers has improved again. Consumers can now switch back to providers whose prices are in some cases well below the energy price brakes for electricity (40 cents per kilowatt hour) and gas (12 cents per kilowatt hour).
Electricity prices have fallen
"Household electricity prices for new customers have fallen continuously since December 2022," says electricity market expert Mirko Schlossarczyk from the consulting firm Enervis. Current offers are less than 30 cents per kilowatt hour. "For existing customers and in the basic service, however, the price level is still noticeably higher and is currently just over 40 cents." These prices have fallen only slightly in recent months.
The causes of the price decline
According to Schlossarczyk, the main reason for the decline in end-user electricity prices is a significant drop in wholesale prices on the electricity exchanges. "The main driver for this is the enormous decline in the price of gas on the spot market, which is now quoted at around 25 to 30 euros per megawatt hour, which is below pre-war levels." The expert sees another reason in the sharp increase in the proportion of low-cost electricity feed-in from wind energy and solar systems in recent months due to weather conditions.
Basic utility tariffs still often above the electricity price brake
According to the comparison portal Check24, 76 percent of electricity tariffs in the basic supply are still above the electricity price brake despite reductions. In the alternative supply, on the other hand, 88 percent of the tariffs are already cheaper than the price brake, says a spokesman. With an annual consumption of 5000 kilowatt hours, new customers currently pay an average of 31.4 cents per kilowatt hour from alternative suppliers. In the basic service, on the other hand, it is 43.2 cents. By comparison, according to the energy industry association BDEW, the average electricity price in Germany in June 2021 was just under 32 cents.
Comparison portal sees trend towards price reductions
But something is also happening with the basic suppliers, i.e. the providers in a region with the most customers. According to a spokesperson, the comparison portal Verivox sees "currently a clear trend towards price reductions". However, there are still some increases. The portal has so far registered 94 electricity price reductions of an average of 12 percent for the months of June, July and August, but at the same time also 9 price increases with an average of 36 percent.
For the coming months, Schlossarczyk continues to expect prices of 28 to 30 cents for new customers. In the case of existing customer contracts and in the universal service, on the other hand, it expects noticeable price reductions and thus a convergence of price levels.
Reasons for the price differences
"The reasons for the price differences in end consumer prices lie in the procurement strategy of the energy suppliers," explains the expert. As a rule, suppliers stocked up on the stock exchanges in good time in order to compensate for extreme price fluctuations and not have to pass them on directly to end customers.