The price of electricity will drop this Thursday by 10.56%

The electricity price in the wholesale market (pool) will drop 10.56% this Thursday to stand at 190.64 euros/megawatt hour (MW), according to data from the Iberian Electricity Market Operator (OMIE).

This is the first average value that has not exceeded the barrier of 200 euros/MWh since last January 9 and represents the second consecutive drop in the average wholesale price.

By time slots, electricity will be more expensive tomorrow between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m., when it will reach 239.38 euros/MWh, and cheaper between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m., when it will be 160.69 euros/MWh.

However, the price of electricity for tomorrow will be more than four times more expensive than the one registered on the third Thursday of January 2021 (82.45 euros/MWh).

With a average price so far this month of 193.08 euros/MWh, the first month of 2022 is, for the moment, below the average values reached in December, the most expensive month in history with 239.17 euros/MWh, but it is close to the 193.42 euros/MWh that was marked in November.

The prices of electricity in the wholesale market have a direct impact on the regulated tariff or PVPC, to which almost 11 million consumers in Spain are covered, and serve as a reference for the other 17 million who contract their supply on the free market.

In the case of the PVPC, the weight of the price of electricity in the wholesale market in the bill is 24%, and the rest corresponds to tolls and charges that defray costs of the system and energy policies, in addition to taxes -such as VAT or electricity tax-, reduced by the Government to try to mitigate the impact of high prices of the pool in the invoice of these consumers.

rising gas prices

The rise in prices that affects much of Europe is due, among other factors, to the rise in international gas markets, which is used in combined cycle plants and sets the market price in most hours, and the increase in the price of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission rights.