RAE limits exports of power from auctions
A year after the first power auctions, they have been universally condemned, as the model employed leaves private suppliers counting their losses.
The only beneficiaries have been traders who acquire cheap energy from PPC and channel it to the Bulgarian and Italian markets, securing high capital gains in the process. As a result, Greek consumers have in effect been subsidizing power consumed in Bulgaria and Italy through their electricity bills.
According to figures from the Regulatory Authority for Energy (RAE), more than 10 percent of the electricity conceded to third parties via auction was exported. That is why, for an auction scheduled for Wednesday, October 25, RAE has decided to set limits on the amount of power anyone will be allowed to sell abroad: Participants in the auction will have to channel at least 30 percent of the amount they acquire to the domestic market.
The measure is expected to contain the activity of traders who – unlike suppliers – do not have to pay the supplier levy that raises the cost of each megawatt-hour (MWh) by 7-8 euros and were able to lead auctions to high prices that are then passed on to bills.
