The Government has met this Thursday with the different parliamentary groups with the aim of negotiating the processing of the energy saving plan approved last week. A meeting in which the proposals that will be taken to the European Union with a view to dealing with the crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Third Vice President of the Government, Theresa Riverawanted to highlight at the end of the meeting that it has been developed under a “collaborative and consensual” tone and added that the dialogue has been “constructive” when exchanging ideas and proposals that will be included in the document that is finally approved.
Along with the aforementioned Minister of Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, the Minister of the Presidency, Relations with the Courts and Democratic Memory attended the meeting on behalf of the Government, Felix Bolanosand the Secretary of State for Relations with the Courts and Constitutional Affairs, rafael simancas.
United We Can bet on a progressive electricity rate and tax private jets and yachts
Of the participating groups, the only one that has made statements about their proposals has been United We Can, which has shown a tendency to promote a national strategy to reduce energy consumption. Among the announced measures, the purple formation has opted to establish a progressive electricity bill and a tax on private planes, yachts and high-capacity cars.
Sources from the purple group have emphasized the creation of a progressive electricity bill model, in which those who consume less pay less. The intention of United We Can is that the kilowatt is more expensive for those people who spend more, in an attempt to reduce their consumption.
Meetings with the energy sector
To finish outlining the plan that he will send to Europe throughout this month in Brussels within the community strategy to deal with the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ribera has also recently met with Enagás, Redeia, Naturgy, Iberdrola, the Spanish Gas Association (Sedigas) and the Association of Electric Power Companies (Aelec), which includes Iberdrola, Endesa and EDP.
For tomorrow, Friday, a Ribera meeting is scheduled with representatives of the Spanish Association for the Promotion of Cogeneration (Cogen) and the Spanish Association of Cogeneration (Acogen).
For her part, the Secretary of State for Energy, Sara Aagesen, will meet this Friday with associations from both the renewable sector (AEE, Anpier, APPA Renovables, UNEF and Protermosolar) and the electricity sector (A3e, AMI, Anerr, Anese, Conaif and CNI).
The objective of these talks is to analyze the situation and collect proposals that help Spain reduce its gas consumption, in accordance with the commitment made in the European framework.
Along these lines, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, announced this Thursday the reduction of VAT on gas from 21% to 5% from October until the end of the year, although the measure could be extended over time “while this such a difficult situation.”
According to the Minister of Finance and Public Function, María Jesús Montero, this reduction will mean a saving of 190 million euros for families and companies, while the Facua consumer association places the savings in a range of between five and ten euros per month, depending on consumption.
Autonomous communities
In recent days, the Government has also received proposals from the autonomous communities to reduce energy consumption in the face of a winter that seems complicated, due to a possible Russian gas cut that puts supply in Europe at risk.
These include reducing the consumption of Christmas lights, creating a public energy company, promoting self-consumption facilities and the renovation of boilers, lowering taxes or promoting green hydrogen.
In addition, it is proposed to prolong the useful life of nuclear power plants, as several opposition parties, including the PP, have been demanding in recent weeks, accelerate biomethane injection projects into the distribution network or increase the budget against poverty energetic.
contingency plan
The Government wants to analyze all the proposals received before sending the final text to Brussels, in a context marked by the energy instability that Europe is suffering, with the electricity and gas markets skyrocketing, which has led the Community Executive to propose a “emergency intervention” and a structural reform of the electricity market.
For the time being, the EU has already managed to fill its natural gas stores above 80% to face the winter, a percentage that all European partners had promised to reach before November 1.
In addition, Brussels is already thinking about next winter, as Ribera requested a few days ago, and has assured this Thursday that reserves must be at 40% in March to face the 2023-2024 cold season with guarantees, a figure that represents a challenge for the EU, since last March they were below 25%.
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