Graph of electricity prices in European exchanges of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK. Spain had much lower electricity prices than the rest of the countries after implementing their solution of directly intervening in the wholesale market. Europe’s recent energy crisis generated large windfall rents for electricity producers. Yet, most EU governments responded with costly downstream measures that left wholesale prices – and producer profits – largely untouched. This column shows that Spain and Portugal charted a different course by intervening directly in the wholesale market, decoupling electricity prices from gas. This substantially lowered consumer bills, with little impact on public funds. Crucially, the intervention provided proportionally greater relief to low-income households, highlighting how policy design can shape both efficiency and equity in times of crisis.
During the European #energy crisis, Spain & Portugal intervened directly in the wholesale market, decoupling electricity prices from gas. This lowered consumer bills, with little impact on public funds.
N Fabra, @clmtleblanc.bsky.social @mateus-souza.bsky.social
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