Spain asks the EU for approval to set the price of electricity on its own

If the EU is not going to react, and does not bet on "bold and forceful measures" to stop the rise in electricity bills, the least it can do is free each capital to put its hand temporarily into the electricity system. price fixing.

That is what Spain thinks, what it defends today in Luxembourg in an extraordinary Council of Energy Ministers and what it has put in writing in a three-page document distributed to its community partners.

Last Thursday the heads of state of the 27 debated in a long Summit on energy issues. As it has been clear for weeks, there is no appetite for the demands of Spain. Most Member States have a less catastrophic diagnosis and recipe book than

and do not want to reform the gas and electricity system or compromise the green transition. In case there were doubts, this Monday up to nine countries led by Germany and the Netherlands, which were joined today by

They have signed a common position document in which they definitively settle any possibility of "ad hoc reforms" of the market. And hence the Spanish reaction at the last minute, which believes that this reaction "does not make much sense", in the words of the Secretary of State,

"A common European approach is our preference for everything that affects the European internal energy market, as it is the most efficient and reasonable way to avoid further distortions. However, in the absence of such a European response, the Commission could provide the States flexibility to adopt measures in that sense in extraordinary situations ", starts the petition. This is not a formal request. The 'non-papers', as these informal contributions are known in community slang, are papers to generate discussion. They put ideas on the table to check the reaction of colleagues and institutions.

Spain reiterates that extraordinary situations require extraordinary measures and that since each increase of one euro in the price of MWh supposes

in electricity costs for Europeans, and that such a bill cannot be passed on to consumers in the middle of a recovery, "European actions are necessary to avoid asymmetries and distortions", starting with "allowing each country to adapt the formation of the price of electricity to its specific situation, due to the mix, the sources and the level of interconnection", which in the The case of the Iberian Peninsula is especially low. Just a sentence but with extraordinary consequences if it could be produced.

Spain proposes several things. In the short term, authorize "decoupling", so that "instead of the signal of the pure marginal price (contaminated by the rises in gas prices), the price of electricity is obtained as an average price with reference to the cost of the clean technologies, particularly renewable ones). The price of electricity would be directly linked to the national production mix, at the same time that it would protect consumers from excessive volatilities and allow them to participate in the benefits provided by a more economical generation mix " suggests the document.

In addition, setting a maximum price for gas as well as allowing contract options for futures, a mechanism that would give the possibility but not the obligation of certain acquisitions at more affordable prices in times of volatility. For the CO2 emissions market (ETS), Spain believes that "different options should be explored, including restricting the participation of financial institutions and modifying the circumstances that may trigger an increase in the supply of EU emission rights" touching on the European directives. "The evaluation by ESMA (the competent European agency) of the European carbon market, announced in the Commission Communication on combating the increase in energy prices, will constitute a valuable contribution to decide which are the most appropriate measures ",He is in the proposal that asks to cap prices, limit the number of purchases and the participation of certain actors that Moncloa considers contribute to volatility through speculation.

The chances of success are slim.

The European Commission is very reluctant and has reiterated this a hundred times.

He believes, like most countries, that the system works well and that

and the risk is that they do more harm than good.

He argues that the problem is not there, but in global demand in the midst of a recovery after a year of pandemic and lockdowns.

He does not see, for the moment at least, no evidence of manipulation or speculation.

And therefore it castles itself by betting on national measures, especially in fiscal matters for the most vulnerable households, legal aid for companies and long-term bets for cleaner energy and with less dependence on foreigners.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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