Anyone who has recently been looking for a new gas supplier may have missed some providers: Companies such as EnBW, Entega or Eon have withdrawn from comparison portals for the time being, as wholesale prices for natural gas have risen sharply in recent weeks. Now Germany’s largest energy supplier Eon is again offering gas contracts for new customers – albeit at higher prices. An average household with an annual consumption of 18,000 kilowatt hours pays around 170 euros per month, the group reports; Depending on the location, there are also offers for 210 euros per month. That is about twice as much as you had to pay on average a year ago if you signed a new gas contract back then – in the middle of the Corona crisis. One could “not escape the current market conditions,” says a spokesman. The situation on the gas market is “historically unique”.
After a cold start to the year, local storage facilities are comparatively weak. But demand has increased worldwide since many industries have recovered from the Corona crisis. However, exporting countries like Russia have not increased their delivery quantities for a long time. In addition, since this year Germany has been charging a CO₂ price on fuels that are harmful to the climate, such as natural gas. Many utilities buy gas in advance so that they can cushion peak prices. Nevertheless, Eon had at least suspended and recalculated the offers for new customers for a week.
Other providers recently went further and terminated ongoing gas contracts. The small utility company Otima even filed for bankruptcy because its procurement costs had risen so sharply. In an emergency, households in such cases initially slip into the so-called substitute supply, for example from the local municipal utilities. Consumer advocates then recommend switching to a cheaper tariff as soon as possible.
Those who rent rent are likely to feel the capers on the gas market after a delay: Most tenant households do not receive their heating bills until the following year.