Towards a reduction in regulated electricity tariffs from February: savings expected for households

Electricity consumers are on the brink of a breakthrough. On Wednesday 11 September, the French energy regulator CRE announced an encouraging prospect: a reduction in regulated electricity tariffs of ‘at least 10%’ from 1 February. This reduction, the first since the start of the energy crisis, could considerably lighten household bills. For example, for an average household with an annual bill of €2,000, this reduction would represent a saving of €200 a year.

CRE plans to postpone a planned increase in the ‘network tariff’, one of the components of the bill, which was due to rise by 4.8%. This postponement, coupled with a significant fall in electricity prices on the markets, is intended to soften the impact of this increase for subscribers to the regulated tariff.

Although electricity prices have not yet returned to pre-crisis levels (€40 to €50 per megawatt-hour), they are now stabilising at around €60 to €70 per MWh, after peaking in 2022. Despite this trend, tariffs have risen by more than 43% in two years, despite the protective measures put in place by the government, such as the tariff shield.