‘In September, energy prices in Poland dropped to their lowest level since March, 2011. At that time, gas prices also saw the biggest single drop since January, 2013. A slight increase was recorded in the prices of fuel and heat from the district heating’, informs Energy Price Monitor published by Warsaw Institute for Economic Studies.
The second wave of the global decline in energy commodity prices reached the consumers in Poland at full force, which can be ascertained by the accelerating reduction of energy prices. In August, prices fell by 0.9% and in September by 2.1%. After the September falls, energy prices are at their lowest level since March, 2011. Since 2010, the only time that energy prices have been plummeting faster was in February this year, right after the first low point on the global fuel market. A key factor in fixing average energy prices were reduced prices at petrol stations. In September, we paid for fuel 4.7% less, and after a decline in August – 2.2% less. Evidently, fuel market in Poland had a delayed reaction to deep declines in the oil prices (by roughly 18%) that occurred in August on the global market. This applies particularly to the wholesale prices of petrol and diesel fuel.
The decline in commodity prices also gave rise to a reduction in gas bills; in this case, however, a regulator’s decision contributed to said reduction. On September 1, the decision of the President of Energy Regulatory Office (URE) came into force, reducing the retail price for gas fuel by 6.5%. Due to the fact that the other components (e.g. distribution fees) have not been changed, the average decrease in gas price constituted only 3% of the total.
Electricity prices for households have not changed – in accordance with the URE President’s decision from January, approved tariffs will be effective until the end of 2015. By contrast, the prices of district heating and solid fuels (mainly coal) used for heating have risen. The increase in fuel charges from September, in all likelihood, stemmed from seasonal variability of demand for fuel. It dropped by 1.2% in a year and was marked by notably lower variability than the coal prices on the global market.
Year-on-year fall in energy prices amounted to 6%, which had a significant impact on the development of an inflation indicator, including the price change of all consumer goods. Contribution of the energy cost in the overall inflation rate was -1 percentage points. This means that if energy prices had remained stable since September, 2014, Poland would not have recorded deflation in September, 2015.
In September, energy price development in Poland reflected the trend observed in other Member States. Energy prices in the EU have fallen in September by 1.5% on a month-to-month basis and 8% on a yearly basis. In September, among the major European countries, the biggest price cuts were recorded in the United Kingdom and Germany, both on a monthly (-1.8% each) and yearly basis (-9.0% and -9.3% respectively). Despite the significant decline, energy prices remain higher than in 2010 – in the entire EU by 8.5% and in Poland by 8%.
Published every month, Energy Price Monitor presents the latest data on changes in energy prices for consumers. The Monitor is based on the official data on changes in the prices of individual energy sources and their average contribution to the basket of consumer goods in Poland. The data used in the development of the Monitor belong to the Central Statistical Office of Poland and are being published by Eurostat.
Energy Price Monitor is a project of the European Climate Foundation (ECF) and is encompassing a number of Member States. Polish Edition of the Monitor is developed by Warsaw Institute for Economic Studies (WISE Institute).
