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The EU Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) and the Council of European Energy Regulators (CEER) publish today the new edition of the Energy Retail and Consumer Protection Volume of the 2020 Market Monitoring Report (MMR) with the support of the Energy Community Secretariat. The volume focuses on retail market competition, retail prices, and consumers, including the importance of consumer engagement in the energy transition.
The Energy Retail Market and Consumer Protection is the last volume published from the MMR, which comprises two other volumes: the Electricity Wholesale Market and the Gas Wholesale Market.
Energy Retail markets monitoring in 2020: what is new?
Important price variations occurred in the course of 2020 and 2021: first the economic decline of COVID-19 with plummeting gas prices and later the rebound following 2020 with a tight LNG supply caused considerable price variations. The unprecedented market conditions risked businesses and households’ ability to pay their energy bills. The volume focuses on 2020 and the COVID-19 related market conditions, while the recently published ACER note makes observations in relation to the high energy prices of the last two quarters of 2021.
Market concentration: besides the limited improvements in this area, the majority of retail energy markets in the EU are highly concentrated, which can limit consumer choice to choose alternative suppliers.
Retail prices differ: the prices consumers paid for their energy continue to be very different across the EU in 2020. Compared to 2009, when the first comparable research was carried out, average electricity household prices increased faster than inflation.
Regulated prices still play a role: the existence of regulated prices in some Member States can limit the entry of new suppliers, reduce consumer choice, and form barriers to price formation.
Comparison tools for consumers are key: to be able to shop around for better prices and services, smart meters and reliable comparison tools are essential. Smart meters also enhance market information, but their roll out is not timely. The presence of these continues to vary across Member States, with improvement in recent years.
Read more on the main findings and recommendations and access the volume.
