Blue (fixed) and yellow (fluctuating) electricity tariffs emerge as the cheapest options for residential consumers in the first half of the year. The “green” tariffs that the majority of consumers remain on are relatively more expensive, without major differences, but have the advantage of providing the consumer with visibility into the price they are paying as each month’s charges are announced in advance on the 1st of each month.

The data on the evolution of the prices come from the electricity tariff comparison tool of the Regulatory Authority (RAAEF) for the period January – June, when the “green” tariff was applied for the first time in order to make a smooth transition to the environment without subsidies that were in force in during the energy crisis.

The evidence shows that with the exception of January so the cheapest tariff was blue, for the next five months the cheapest offers from the providers were included in the “yellow” tariff. From the same data it also appears that during the first five months electricity prices fell. The main reasons for the decline were relatively low demand due to the mild winter and normal temperatures that prevailed in the spring, the increased participation of renewable sources in covering the load and the holding of natural gas prices at levels lower than last year, despite the rise that recorded in the last period.

Conditions have changed in the summer as demand increases and thermal units participate more in meeting the load. The average wholesale price of electricity during the first 20 days of June was 97 euros per megawatt hour, compared to 81 euros in May and 60 in April. This means that – unless the picture changes by the end of the month – July’s floating tariffs (green and yellow) will be increased.

As stated by the Minister of Environment and Energy Theodore Skylakakis, seasonality – due to the high participation of RES – will henceforth dominate the electricity system, with higher prices in summer, lower in Autumn and Spring and medium prices in winter depending on the weather.

According to factors in the energy space, consumers could adjust their strategy accordingly:

-Either choosing floating tariffs with lower charges in some months and higher in others,

-Either turning to fixed, which during periods of general price declines also decline (eg in April there was a six-month fixed tariff on the market at 8.8 cents per kilowatt hour). Fixed rates protect against increases but do not allow the consumer to benefit from decreases during their term. In addition, unlike the green and yellow tariffs, they contain an early exit clause if the consumer chooses to “break” the contract before it expires.