ᐅ Gas Prices – Where Is Gas Still Affordable?

Good morning,

I just received a steep price increase from my energy provider enercity, raising the cost to 15 cents per kWh starting in August. That’s really tough, and I think prices will rise even further.

It’s a strange feeling to be thrown back so quickly into an energy supply situation where you have to figure out how to keep the house warm. It seems to me that the government has given up on the goal of enabling everyone to adequately cover at least their basic needs.

Goodbye central supply structures; now the winner is whoever has solar panels and a heat pump in their new build, while the others are left out.

Welcome back, coal heating 😕

Frustrated regards,

I signed a 24-month contract last November for a guaranteed rate of 6.x cents per kWh. In hindsight, that was almost a perfect timing.

Whether the supplier can or will actually honor that is, of course, another matter.

On the other hand, you apparently have a new build? Otherwise, it could get much worse than an increase from 40 to 100 euros in consumption costs. Because what if the bill went from 150 to 400 euros instead...

Unfortunately, I have the latter, now at just under 400 😱.

In the newspaper (I’m not allowed to mention the name. It’s called the same as the thing that hangs above the washbasin and that you look into every morning), there is an article in which a utility provider listed prices. Costs are rising even more, and there is no end in sight.

Reinhard84.2 schrieb:

It seems to me that the government has given up on the goal of ensuring that everyone can at least adequately meet their basic needs.

What you are looking for will not exist in a democracy — at least not as long as the political climate strongly favors the far right...

What you can do now — and you have already taken the first step — is to inform yourself, for example here, about the options for switching to a heat pump. Although this process moved faster than expected, gas prices would have inevitably risen to this level over the next 15 years anyway, since by sometime between 2030 and 2040, burning gas will no longer be permitted.

If you start your planning early (and with our help), the savings will outweigh the additional energy costs of the next two winters. By then, you should have managed the transition.

Addition: From this point on, you can start reducing your gas consumption without sacrificing comfort.

For summer, focus on water heating: you should ensure that the hot water is only heated once a day (or twice if necessary). This prevents the boiler from cycling frequently and reduces its energy losses.

In winter, a hydraulic balancing is recommended. You can do this yourself after watching a couple of YouTube videos. If you have a condensing boiler, you can save around 20-30%. The goal is to achieve continuous, low-frequency operation of the boiler at minimal load. Also, disable night setback and keep all radiators fully open. This will also help you better estimate the correct sizing for your upcoming heat pump.