Gas costs will rise by more than a third due to higher procurement spending, says EnBW
German energy giant EnBW AG announced on Tuesday that gas prices for households will increase by an average of 38% from December 1. The company attributed the increase to higher costs in wholesale markets.
According to the company, prices will average €13.54 per kilowatt hour (kWh). The bill for a typical four-person household will increase by an additional €768 ($745) per year.
The announcement comes about three months after the previous increase took effect.
“As a result of the war of aggression against Ukraine, the energy markets have been experiencing unprecedented price increases and permanently high price levels in recent months,” declared EnBW.
The firm elaborated, explaining that gas prices in wholesale markets, which averaged around two cents per kWh in previous years, have increased fivefold to around 11 cents per kWh so far in 2022.
EnBW also told Spiegel magazine that even after the announced increase, gasoline prices will remain below the market average. At the same time, the energy provider expressed its willingness to consider the government’s proposals aimed at mitigating the increase in energy prices.
Leading German economists have recently warned that soaring petrol prices could push the EU’s largest economy into recession. They forecast that Germany will be among the countries hardest hit by the global economic slowdown next year. According to statistics office Destatis, annual inflation in Germany accelerated to 8.8% in August, the highest level in nearly 50 years. The country’s central bank, the Bundesbank, also warned last month that a recession was looming in Germany. “increasingly likely” but did not provide any number.