Gas and electricity bills down by 10%

The average electricity bill for Belgian households has decreased by 9% and gas bills by as much as 12%, resulting in savings of €280 a year, according to figures released by the Electricity and Gas regulatory body (Creg), published in L'Echo today. This decrease results from a combination of factors, according to the secretary of state for energy, Melchior Wathelet:  a price freeze, the end of severance penalties and a review of the indexation system, but also the growing savviness of Belgian consumers, who are less reluctant to shop around. The price of the electricity itself, excluding distribution costs, transportation and taxes, is less than the average price in the three neighbouring countries. Gas remains slightly more expensive in Belgium, but is steadily catching up with neighbouring countries. Wathelet emphasises the role of consumers in this price decline. They "sought out information and played the competitors off one another," he told L’Echo.