Almost 280 million leva have been paid by the SEU Fund to businesses due to high electricity prices

Nearly 280 million leva have been paid as compensation from the Electricity System Security Fund to cover high electricity costs from the beginning of the year to December 3. This was stated in response to a question from BTA regarding current payments from the fund to businesses and other categories of end customers.

The Energy Ministry indicated that, according to data from the Electricity System Security Fund, the costs of programs to compensate businesses in connection with high electricity prices from July 1 to December 3, 2024 amounted to just over 278 million leva. The budget of this program is 549 million leva.

BTA recalls that the Council of Ministers adopted a program for providing compensation to non-household end customers of electricity. The compensations are related to the prices of electricity for non-household end customers and are for the period from July 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024, in compliance with the rules on state aid. They are in the amount of 100 percent of the difference between the real average monthly exchange price for base load on the "Day Ahead" segment of the "Bulgarian Independent Energy Exchange" for the respective month and the base price of BGN 180 per megawatt-hour for non-household end customers, regardless of which network they are connected to.

The program compensates part of the electricity costs of non-household end customers, with the exception of operators of the electricity transmission and distribution networks, for which the law regulates a mechanism for compensating for non-recoverable costs, as well as for non-household end customer facilities that are explicitly listed in the transitional and final provisions of the State Budget Act for 2024. For them, these persons receive compensation under a Compensation Program approved by the Council of Ministers on April 23, 2024. The program is a measure to protect economic balances and macroeconomic stability by preserving the competitiveness of enterprises and limiting inflation.

A check by BTA on the website of the Bulgarian Independent Energy Exchange (IBEX) shows that the average base load price for November in the "Day Ahead" segment is 328.09 leva, for October - 174.76 leva, for September - 209.16 leva, for August - 247.80 leva, for July - 266.90 leva.

The Ministry of Energy added in its response that separately, under a program adopted by Decision of the Council of Ministers (CCM) 294/2024, amended by CCM 481/2024, all end customers of electricity, specified in § 3, para. 14 of the transitional and final provisions of the State Budget Act, are also entitled to monthly compensation. These are community centers, prayer houses, temples, kindergartens, schools, children's sports schools. From the beginning of the year until December 3, 2024. they were paid compensations in the amount of nearly 1.120 million leva.

The compensation under the program is calculated as the difference between the average base load price of IBEX in the "Day Ahead" segment for the respective month and the regulated price approved by the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) and applicable during the current price period for the respective license territory in which the specific facility is located, under which the final suppliers sell electricity to final household customers connected to the electricity distribution network at the low-voltage level. The quantities of energy consumed by them are measured by a commercial metering device with one scale (or in the presence of a commercial metering device with two scales, measured quantities of consumed electricity at a daily tariff price), and the amount does not include VAT.

The indicative budget under the program is 50 million leva for the period from January 1 to December 31, 2024.

The compensation measure has been assessed as not constituting State aid for kindergartens, nurseries and nursery groups, as well as for schools (private, state and municipal) and as support in the "non-aid" regime for the remaining beneficiaries (children's sports schools, community centres, prayer houses, temples and monasteries of registered religions) in connection with a Commission notice on the notion of State aid.

As of July 1, EWRC decided that the customers of "Electrohold Sales" pay the following prices excluding VAT: for access and transmission to/through the electricity transmission network - 0.01354 BGN per kilowatt hour (kWh), for transmission of electricity through the low-voltage electricity distribution network - 0.03803 BGN/kWh and for access to the electricity distribution network for household customers - 0.00770 BGN/kWh.

The customers of "EVN Bulgaria Electricity Supply" pay the following prices excluding VAT: for access and transmission to/through the electricity transmission network - 0.01354 BGN/kWh, for transmission of electrical energy through the low-voltage electricity distribution network - 0.03704 BGN/kWh and for access to the electricity distribution network for household customers - 0.00819 BGN/kWh.

Customers of "ENERGO-PRO Sales" pay the following prices excluding VAT: for access and transmission to/through the electricity transmission network - 0.01354 BGN/kWh, for access to the electricity distribution network for household customers - 0.00977 BGN/kWh and for transmission of electricity through the low-voltage electricity distribution network - 0.03689 BGN/kWh.