In order to fully understand an energy bill, you must first be clear about the concepts that appear on it. Among them, one of the most complex is the fixed gas term . You have surely seen it on your bill, but you may not know exactly what it refers to.
To make it clear why you are paying, we are going to explain in more detail what this concept consists of. So that at the end of this article, gas billing will seem a little simpler to you.
What is the fixed gas term?
Typically, the gas bill is made up of five concepts:
The first one you encounter is the fixed term, then the variable term or gas energy term appears ; later we will see the difference between the two.
After these concepts, you will see that the Special Tax on Hydrocarbons is applied. A tax linked to the manufacture and import of gas. This activity generates CO₂ emissions that are harmful to the atmosphere. Therefore, what this tax seeks is to discourage the consumption of hydrocarbons, thus protecting the environment.
The next cost that appears on the bill is the rental of the gas meter. Although you may own the meter, it is usually rented. Here the supplier acts as an intermediary, collecting the rental price from you and paying it to the distributor, who is the owner of the meter.
Finally, there is VAT. You already know that Value Added Tax is applied to practically all products and services on the market. In the specific case of gas, VAT was reduced to 5% as a result of the energy crisis that took place in Europe during 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine. As the price of this hydrocarbon has fallen, VAT has recovered and is now back at its usual rate, which is 21%.
We return to the beginning of the bill to focus now on christmas island email list the concept of a fixed gas term . As you can imagine from its name, it is an amount that remains stable over time. All of us who are natural gas consumers have to pay it to be able to access this fuel, regardless of what our consumption was in the billing period.
Imagine you are going on holiday for the entire month of August. The bill for this month will have a variable gas term equal to zero, because you have not consumed any gas. But the fixed term will still be charged to you, since it is not linked to consumption. You pay it for the simple fact of having a gas supply in your home or business.
Consumers can be part of the free market or the regulated gas market, and can switch from one to the other when they deem it appropriate.
The regulated market applies the so-called Last Resort Tariff (TUR), which has a regulated price. It is the Government that determines the maximum and minimum prices that last resort retailers can charge customers covered by the TUR.
The vast majority of domestic consumers can benefit from the regulated gas tariff, because their consumption does not usually exceed 50,000 kWh per year and they are connected to a natural gas network that is equal to or less than four bars.
On the contrary, in the free market, marketing companies can freely set their prices and make offers such as the Zen Flat Rate for gas available to consumers .
