Electricity suppliers who chose not to announce discounts for their new green tariffs on December 1, the date by which suppliers were requested to present the basic details of their respective formulas to be applied for the new tariff ahead of its January 1 launch, are now preparing to belatedly proceed with discounts on these new tariffs by December 31.

The suppliers who incorporated discounts into their new green tariff formulas in their December 1 announcements are already objecting to the decisions reached by rival suppliers to also announce discounts, belatedly. The energy ministry has yet to decide whether it will permit these delayed discounts.

Green tariffs with discounts are expected to drop below initial estimates and reach between 14 and 15 cents per KWh for most consumers, assuming low-level wholesale electricity prices at the energy exchange remain subdued.

Wholesale electricity prices averaged 110.9 euros per MWh for the first 12 days of December, unchanged from the end of November.

Besides the intensifying competition for green tariffs, competition among suppliers is also growing for fixed tariffs, dubbed blue tariffs. Consumers will also be able to choose variable tariffs, dubbed yellow tariffs.

This competition is expected to lead to tariff levels below those of subsidized tariffs, which were introduced as an emergency measure for all low-voltage consumers during the energy crisis and are set to be terminated under the new system being introduced January 1.

The new green tariffs being introduced at the start of the new year will be implemented automatically, for all consumers, unless they formally object and choose either variable or fixed tariffs.