The exact amount of the gas surcharge to save systemically important gas importers is now known: it will amount to 2.419 cents per kilowatt hour.
This was announced by Trading Hub Europe GmbH, which is responsible for the publication, on Monday.
The joint venture of the German gas transmission system operators based in Ratingen in North Rhine-Westphalia is responsible for the compensation payments to the importers.
THE then transfers the payments to the gas suppliers, who in turn will pass them on to all gas customers.
The Ministry of Economics recently assumed a range of 1.5 to 5 cents per kilowatt hour, which would mean considerable additional costs for customers.
Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) had said that he expected "several hundred euros per household" per year.
For a household with a single-family house and an annual consumption of 20,000 kilowatt hours, the additional costs are around 484 euros per year.
Added to this is the VAT.
However, the federal government wants to prevent this from becoming due: Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) has asked for an exception at EU level so that Germany does not have to levy VAT on the planned state gas levy.
Habeck made a similar statement.
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) had promised the citizens additional relief in view of the sharp rise in energy prices.
Nobody will be left alone.
The gas surcharge will apply from October, but it will not appear immediately on the bills, but with a little delay, according to the ministry.
For reasons of consumer protection, there are notice periods in the Energy Industry Act of four to six weeks that must be observed.
Therefore, the surcharge will probably appear on the bills for the first time in November/December.
The Economics Ministry sees the levy as a result of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine.
This has drastically exacerbated the already tense situation on the energy markets.
Since mid-June, Russia has reduced its gas import volumes to Germany in an unpredictable manner, thereby creating an artificial energy shortage and driving up prices.
This "external shock" is particularly affecting Germany, which has so far been heavily dependent on cheap gas from Russia.
Many gas deliveries from Russia, which had previously been contractually guaranteed, were cancelled.
The surcharge is intended to help importers who are suffering from the reduction in gas supply volumes from Russia.
Gas importers have delivery obligations to their customers, especially to municipal utilities.
The importers can only meet these delivery obligations by replacing the lost quantities from Russia by purchasing much more expensive quantities on the short-term market.
So far, these additional costs cannot be passed on.
The result: Significant losses have been incurred by importers.
That is why the federal government has agreed on a rescue package worth billions with the utility Uniper – and as part of this also the gas surcharge.
This comes in addition to market-related price increases, which gradually reach customers.