Power suppliers change commercial tactics

Mytilienos subsidiary Protergia is the first alternative power provider to have reacted to the increase in the price of electricity from Public Power Corporation, as on Thursday it launched three new packages for the electricity retail market following the model set by cellphone networks.

The new packages offer a fixed monthly rate for two years, without a clause for carbon dioxide emissions, for a specific amount of power consumption.

Protergia is also the first private supplier to have already adjusted its rates by incorporating an 11 percent hike in its competitive rates.

The other private suppliers are also busy making calculations after the PPC rate adjustments so as to make their own moves, particularly the bigger companies as the smaller ones only have very narrow profit margins to work within.

The major alternative players will apparently opt for the same model too, seeking a greater market share. This means they will avoid raising their rates for existing products and supply their new products at higher rates instead. Private suppliers will target medium-voltage consumers, where the competition field has opened up after the reduction of the discount for PPC customers who pay their bills on time.