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ACER and the Council of European Energy Regulators (CEER) publish today the Energy Retail and Consumer Protection 2023 Market Monitoring Report (MMR).
2022 was an unprecedented year for EU energy consumers and retail markets, as the post-pandemic recovery and Russia’s invasion to Ukraine caused wholesale energy prices to spike, which then heavily impacted consumers’ bills.
Against this background, this year’s energy retail and consumer protection MMR finds that:
- Retail electricity and gas prices rose significantly in response to wholesale price spikes.
- Despite the recent (2023) wholesale electricity prices reductions, end-user prices are falling at slower rates.
- Governments provided support measures to their residential and industrial customers.
- An important lesson from 2022 is the need to further target support measures (if needed) and to incentivise cutting energy consumption.
- The crisis triggered demand reductions, particularly among industrial customers. On the contrary, energy demand in the household sector was not highly affected by the energy crisis.
- Consumer bills and comparison tools fail to meet the criteria as set out in EU law.
The report provides a series of recommendations, including:
- A list of possible targeted support measures that Member States could opt for in the future.
- The need for comparison tools to meet the required standards.
- High-quality tools are needed for consumers to make informed decisions.
What’s next?
ACER-CEER webinar: Monitoring energy retail markets and consumer protection on Thursday, 14 September 2023.
Read more about our findings and recommendations.
Access the report's infographic.
