RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, which has just introduced a new color-based tariff system of variable and fixed electricity tariffs, as well as a chart listing all tariffs offered by suppliers for simplified price comparisons, intends to soon follow up these actions with the establishment of an Energy Ombudsman and a further price comparison tool (www.energycost.gr), both planned to begin operating in February.

These new additions are all planned to offer greater electricity market transparency and protection for households and businesses, while also intensifying competition between suppliers through simpler price comparisons.

Consumers faced a tedious, if not impossible, task if wanting to compare tariffs offered by suppliers prior to the introduction of the color-based tariff system, as some 130 tariffs were on offer.

Besides variable green tariffs, the newly introduced tariff system, also includes fixed blue tariffs and variable yellow tariffs.

Consumers had up until December 31 to express preferences or be automatically transferred to the green-tariff category by their suppliers.

The idea to establish an Energy Ombudsman began taking shape in 2022, during the energy crisis, when RAAEY faced a wave of customer complaints about ambiguous electricity bills. Most of these complaints were not fully addressed.

The Energy Ombudsman’s objective will be to resolve any disputes and spare consumers from needing to take time-consuming and costly legal action.