Gas stove in a Munich kitchen. picture alliance / SZ Photo | Catherine Hess
Since the beginning of April, households have had to pay the regular VAT rate for gas again.
For customers, the lack of relief leads, among other things, to an increase in prices, shows an analysis by the Verivox portal.
A Verivox expert therefore advises consumers to agree on a fixed gas price for the coming heating season now.
Gas prices for new customers in Germany are experiencing a significant increase. According to the newspapers of the “Funke Media Group” and an analysis by Verivox, consumers have to pay around one cent more per kilowatt hour for new contracts than four weeks ago. This increase is attributed to rising wholesale prices and the reintroduction of the regular VAT rate since April.
In March 2024, a new customer household with an annual consumption of 20,000 kilowatt hours paid a nationwide average of around 6.5 cents per kWh. The cheapest offer is currently around 7.6 cents/kWh, which, according to Verivox, corresponds to an increase of around 17 percent. The portal’s analysis is based on a comparison of gas tariffs for new customers with a twelve-month price guarantee including bonuses.
Background: The reduction in VAT from 19 to 7 percent from October 2022 noticeably relieved households. A model family with an annual gas consumption of around 20,000 kilowatt hours benefited from an average reduction of 426 euros. However, the full VAT rate now applies again.
Wholesale natural gas prices are rising
Wholesale natural gas prices in Europe showed a slight increase earlier this year, according to Verivox, with the spot market price recently rising above 3 cents/kWh. “This price movement has a direct impact on the offers for new customers, as the gas suppliers calculate particularly sharply in the face of competition,” said Thorsten Storck, energy expert at Verivox of the “Funke Media Group”.
Verivox recommends gas customers to agree on a fixed gas price for the coming heating season now. Due to the possibility of further rising wholesale prices, cheap tariffs with a price guarantee could prove advantageous in securing the current price level for the next heating season.
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