On the wholesale markets, the price of gas rises and the sentence is immediate for consumers. The benchmark price, this indicative rate published each month by the Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) in place of the regulated rate, is increasing for the month of May 2024. To date, the average recommended price of a kilowatt hour is €0.11 on average for cooking/hot water and €0.08 for heating. The estimated price of subscriptions for these types of contracts, stable for several months, is, respectively, €102.94 and €257.18 per year.
“For example, the price of a fixed price offer over one year is likely to differ significantly from the CRE reference price which reflects monthly and quarterly variations in the price of gas. Consumers must take into account, when comparing the offers proposed by suppliers, the contractual conditions associated with them”specifies the CRE in a press release.
Gas for the kitchen: between €173 and €268
The benchmark price is presented as a comparison aid. So what about the French market? The typical profiles of the CRE are a typical customer at the Base d’Engie regulated tariff with an annual consumption of 750 kWh (cooking use) and a typical customer at the B1 tariff (level 2) with an annual consumption of 17,000 kWh (use heating) were passed to the energy mediator comparator. Our household lives in Rennes and wants to see the offers, promotions included.
For the first customer who uses gas for cooking, 35 offers are offered on the comparator. In terms of price, the benchmark price is €186 per year but the best offer on the market is €173, or a little more than one euro per year, kilowatt hour and subscription included. In contrast, the most expensive contract, a 100% green gas offer, is billed at €268.
We also note that 21 offers are said to be fixed. These are contracts for which the price per kilowatt hour is blocked for 12, 24, 36 or 48 months. It remains to be seen whether this is advantageous depending on market fluctuations but note that, despite the end of the TRV, the change of supplier remains free and immediate, even in a blocked offer where the duration only binds the professional.
Gas for heating: a difference of €70 per month
For our second customer, 35 offers are proposed and the invoice amounts to €1,777 at the benchmark price. The higher the rating climbs, the greater the differences. Thus, the energy supplier Ohm, repeatedly criticized for its questionable commercial practices, sells a contract for €1,613 per year. Beware of significant variations in the monthly bill and annual regularization invoices. The most expensive offer rises to €2,513 per year, or €209 per month compared to €148 at the benchmark price.
At the start of 2024, gas bills were hit by the consumption tax increase. Gas, a fossil energy (extracted from the ground to be burned in the atmosphere), is now taxed more, in order to encourage consumers to switch to electric heat pumps, considered less polluting.
According to an INSEE study published Thursday May 2, despite state aid, gas prices for households could increase by 12% in 2024, after an increase of 18% in 2023.
