The number of customers returning to power utility PPC continued to grow in November,  7,500 customers leaving independent suppliers for the switch, a 44 percent increase compared to a month earlier, when 5,200 customers returned to the power utility.

Despite the rising number of customers returning to PPC, the outflow to independent suppliers still remains greater, meaning the power utility’s customer base is shrinking, but at a slower rate.

According to data covering the market from January through November, approximately 29,800 customers left independent suppliers to return to PPC, nearly fivefold the figure registered for the equivalent period last year, or 490 percent higher.

It remains unclear if December will produce a similar pattern. PPC, since the beginning of the month, has introduced a fixed-tariff offer of 18 cents per KWh (17 cents per KWh for online applications).

PPC chief executive Giorgos Stassis recently denied that competition in Greece’s electricity market is eroding. He stressed the market has been fully liberalized, noting the power utility’s retail market share will gradually fall to nearly 50 percent over the next few years.