The incessant rise in the electricity bill last year has been one of the main concerns of many Spanish families who have seen how the amount was multiplied to pay despite the different savings measures and tricks that we could apply to try to reduce the cost at the end of the month.
However, the main weapon at our disposal to spend as little as possible has been compare prices and offers between the different electricity companies to see if it would be better for us to switch to the free market or remain in the regulated or PVPC (Voluntary Price for Small Consumers).
Until the end of last year, it was the electricity companies in the free market that offered the cheapest alternatives outside the regulated tariff by the Government. However, at the beginning of 2023 the situation changed and since the end of January the PVPC was already the most affordable rate in many areas of the country due to the progressive decrease in prices and the compensation of the gas cap. How is the situation now with a view to starting the new course in September?
Best prices for the electricity rate in September
Electricity is usually more expensive in winter and summer, when energy demand increases due to the use of heating and air conditioning, but prices fell in spring and autumnwhen said demand decreases.
Now we are fully entering autumn and It is to be expected that prices will continue to fall (if nothing strange happens in the market) until the first cold weather forces us to turn on the heating and demand rises, so the forecasts indicate that The PVPC rate with time discrimination will continue to be competitive. But, as much as in recent months?
To verify this we have done a search in the CNMC comparator for our area of residence. To do this, you just have to go to their website, select that we want to analyze the electricity rate (we can also see the gas rate or both combined) and after clicking start, the next screen will ask us some simple questions, such as what is our Postal Codethe estimated annual electricity consumption (data that we can look for in our past bills), the hired potency and if we want to hire any extra service.
After filling in these fields, a warning message will appear indicating that The prices they are going to give us do not include compensation from the gas cap, we accept and the page will show us a comparison with the price of the regulated tariff or PVPC at the top and a table with the offers of the different companies.
In my case, for my specific area with a contracted power of 5kW and a consumption of 400 kWh He tells me a price of 86.60 euros for the PVPC rate and the following best options on the free market:
Let’s see what the electricity companies offer with the cheapest rates right now and what their price is compared to the 86.60 euros of the PVPC rate:
- Clarity Energy: in its fixed Optimal Rate valid only for domestic consumers, it offers a total cost of 74.6 euros a month
- NUFRI ENERGY 3 prices with a total calculated cost of 75.41 euros per month only for new clients.
- Domestic: in its E-Domestica Luz rate only for domestic consumers, it offers a price of 75.92 euros a month.
- Iberdrola: in its 2.0TD Online Plan rate (0-10kW) it offers a price of 76.47 euros per month only if we are new clients.
As we see, unlike what was happening in 2022, the tariff prices in the free market are very close at the top of the comparison, although clearly Right now there are rates in the free market that are cheaper than the PVPC.
The key here to decide whether or not it is worth it to continue on the regulated rate or switch to the free market is if we are going to be able to take advantage of its main asset right now: the low prices of some time sections and days such as weekends where even the price is “almost free” at some times.
Therefore, if we can adapt our increased energy consumption to these off-peak hours, The PVPC rate and its differentiation by time slots is currently still the best option.
If, on the other hand, our habitual consumption focuses on flat and peak hoursusually because we are at home using appliances and gadgets from 6:00 p.m. to 12:00 p.m.then the free market rates Without time discrimination, they will probably compensate us more by offering a more competitive fixed price during those hours.
Cover image | Anais MURITH
In Xataka Smart Home | How to know what price electricity will have tomorrow, whether you have a rate in the free or regulated market