Australia Plans Gas Tax upon Consumers to ‘Help Businesses Replace Dwindling Russian Supplies’
New levy could cost households up to €1, 000 a year
Households that use gas for heating can expect expenses to rise by several 100 euros after a levy is certainly introduced in October to help companies replace dwindling Russian gas supplies, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said upon Thursday.
“ We expect it [the levy] to become between 1 . 5 plus 5 cents per kilowatt hour, ” Habeck said. He said annual additional costs of around € 500 ($507) could be anticipated for a household of 4.
However , the highest rate of 5 cents would mean gas bills regarding such households, which use on average 20, 1000 kilowatt hours of gas annually, would rise by € 1, 000.
Habeck said the particular levy aimed to strengthen the gas market.
Support measures will be put in place for those German residents who risk falling directly into poverty, Habeck said, phoning the levy “ a bad step, but a necessary step. ”
This individual gave no other details of the particular measures.
The particular announcement comes as consumers within Germany are already being place under severe financial stress by soaring pumpiing in all sectors.
Exactly why is the levy being enforced?
The price of gas imports has been rising dramatically since Russia began reducing its delivery amid tensions over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
The particular levy aims to share the expenses among all gas customers, including industrial consumers, to pay for replacing Russian fuel.
Economy Ministry sources have said the particular levy, which is to go straight into force October 1, will allow importers to pass on 90% of their costs, which they should currently bear without outside aid.
The particular “ netted price realignment mechanism” would be valid till the end of September 2024, the sources said, incorporating that the size of the levy would be announced in Aug, based on gas prices.
Habeck’s statement comes just days after Ruskies gas exporter Gazprom cut flows through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to 20% of capacity.
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