• Crisis "The energy island of Sánchez" foresees cuts in the interconnection with France

  • Economy Portugal distances itself from Spain and pampers Algeria to improve "energy cooperation"

Spain and Portugal will have an ad hoc solution to try to reduce the prices of the electricity bill.

After almost 10 hours of meeting in Brussels, the European Council concluded this Friday with an agreement to promote more measures to help households and companies.

Madrid and Lisbon, which arrived on Thursday with a common position demanding the green light to try a more aggressive solution, have achieved part of their demands.

"We have discussed this intensively. The Iberian Peninsula has a very special situation, its energy mix has a lot of renewables, that is good, but with few interconnections. Therefore, we have agreed that a special treatment will be possible for the Iberian Peninsula so that it can deal with this specific situation and manage electricity";

confirmed at the end of the meeting the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

The agreement is not all that Moncloa aspired to, it is not all that he was looking for, but it is infinitely more than he could have dreamed of a few months ago.

Spain has been demanding since September to completely decouple the price of gas from the electricity bill or fully intervene in the market to change the marginal price fixing system, but its partners, with Germany, Holland, Austria, Sweden or Denmark in the lead, they deny, assuring that the risk is too high and that the market that has taken three decades to set up cannot be dismantled without a good strategy.

Spain, along with France, Italy, Greece, Romania or Greece, argued that national measures are not enough, that a European plan is needed to immediately cap prices, because they are destroying the situation of families, households and companies.

There were doubts and reluctance, and after numerous disappointing summits, the Iberian strategy has been to present a joint battle to request this special treatment.

The reasoning is that Spain produces a lot with renewables, but due to the type of market, the price of gas is especially malicious on the bill, and that is unfair.

Spain follows all the rules of the European market, Sánchez said on Thursday, but interconnections are so low (below 3%) that there are few benefits.

Ironically, that is what could now open the doors to something special.

Spain maintains that this "special treatment" will not distort the market, that it will be temporary, effective and without cost for the European coffers or those of other partners.

The Council now leaves the design of the mechanism in the hands of the Commission, hand in hand with the countries, to find the most appropriate technical and legal formula.

Conforms to The Trust Project criteria

Know more

  • European Comission

  • Russia

  • Portugal

  • Italy

  • Greece

  • Belgium

  • Germany

European Summit Sánchez demands in Brussels a "particular response to the specific problem of the Iberian energy island"

War in UkraineSpain, in the caboose of military aid to Ukraine

CompaniesThe war also shakes tourism in Europe: reservations fall by 23% with more expensive flights and packages

See links of interest

  • war ukraine

  • last minute transportation strike

  • Last News

  • time change

  • Best schools Spain

  • Translator

  • Topics

  • Work calendar 2022

  • events

  • How to do

  • Maccabi Fox Tel Aviv - Real Madrid

  • Portugal - Turkey, live

  • Italy - Macedonia live

  • AS Monaco - Bitci Baskonia

  • Asvel Villeurbanne - Olympiacos Piraeus