Energy bills, Brussels close to a deal with Rome on electricity prices

Brussels and Rome are moving closer to an agreement on the mechanism that links the price of electricity to the cost of gas, with the aim of easing bills while still complying with Union rules. This was confirmed by the European Commission’s spokesperson for Competition, Ricardo Cardoso, who used a single word to describe the state of the negotiations: “close”.

The dossier concerns one of the issues most keenly felt by European governments in recent years: the system for setting electricity prices, which in most Union countries remains tied to the cost of gas even when the share of production from renewable sources is high. A loosening of this link, if approved, would change the way the final price reaches Italian businesses and households, reducing the impact of fluctuations in the gas market on electricity bills.

However, two sets of problems remain open, both indicated as not yet resolved by the sources consulted: the technical issues of the proposed mechanism and those related to the budgetary flexibility needed to sustain it. No precise timetable for the conclusion of the negotiations has been disclosed at this time, nor have details of the measures under consideration by the two parties been released.

The fact that the Commission is speaking openly about being close to a deal nonetheless marks a step forward compared to previous phases of the talks, when the negotiations were described as further from a shared solution. It remains to be seen whether the technical timeline will allow the agreement to be finalized before the pressure of energy prices makes itself felt again with the arrival of the cold season.

The technical negotiations between the European Commission and the Italian government continue with no announced date for their conclusion, with budgetary issues still to be resolved.