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Electricity price more than doubles

As many of you know already, energy prices in Flanders have gone up considerably in recent years. However, the energy regulator CREG has now worked out just how much more Flemings are paying for their electricity compared with a decade ago. In 2016 the average Flemish family paid 112% more for electricity than it did in 2007. This equates to an average price rise of 561.91 euro/annum.

One of the greatest contributory factors in the price rise has been the increase in electricity distribution costs. These have risen by 152% in Flanders over the past decade. Levies and taxes on electricity have also gone up. The price of the electricity itself went up by 30 between 2007 and 2016.

Meanwhile, the price of electricity in Wallonia and the Brussels-Capital Region rose by 40% and 20% respectively during the same period. There was even a fall in the price of electricity recorded in some areas.

Another factor that has served to fuel the increase in the electricity price in Flanders was the abolition of the free-electricity quota in our region.

While the price of electricity has risen sharply, the price of gas fell. An average Flemish consumer is now paying 5.09% (57.15 euro/annum) less for his/her gas than they were in 2007. However, here too the distribution costs rose.

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