De prijs van elektriciteit en aardgas voor ondernemingen in België - Samenstelling, niveau en evolutie ten opzichte van de buurlanden [ Working Paper 10-14 - 18/12/2014]

In 2012 ever growing prices of electricity and natural gas compelled the federal government to take measures to better control these prices, and thus improve Belgian competitiveness. This study explores the evolution of the prices of electricity and natural gas for enterprises in Belgium and three neighbouring countries. It is done for 2007 - 2014 and using energy price data from Eurostat and some other sources. The average electricity prices in Belgium have long been the second highest of the four countries, but the price increases were less strong than in Germany and France. That’s why today the prices are moderate to low, suggesting that the measures must have been effective. During the whole period since 2007, the prices of natural gas were relatively low. Still, attention should be paid to the prices, in particular those of electricity. This is of uttermost importance for energy-intensive manufacturing. All for countries grant discounts on energy levies, in some cases even on network tariffs. The position energy-intensive manufacturing in Belgium may therefore be less favourable than would be suggested by the average prices. Hence, it remains important to analyse energy prices for energy-intensive manufacturing.