In this series of articles, we want to show statistics on the electricity cost per kWh for countries in different parts of the world.
The data is comparative, as the price of electricity varies widely within the countries themselves by region, and tariffs sometimes change every month. The difference in cost is also affected by the infrastructure and geography of individual areas.
Electricity in Europe according to Eurostat
Every year Eurostat publishes comparative data on the price per kilowatt of electricity in selected European and nearby countries. The latest statistics publication for the current year is planned to appear in May 2018. According to data for 2017, the Top 10 countries with the lowest cost for household consumer include:
- Ukraine (0,039 Euro per kWh)
- Kosovo (0.066)
- Serbia (0.066)
- Macedonia (0.082)
- Albania (0.084)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina (0.86)
- Bulgaria (0.096)
- Montenegro (0.097)
- Moldova (0.098)
- Turkey (0.105)
The prices presented in the rating include taxes for private consumers. Private (or domestic/household) consumers are referred to buyers with an annual electricity consumption from 2500 to 5000 kWh.
Among the members of the European Union, the highest cost for electricity was achieved in Germany, Denmark, and Belgium. Compared with the leader in the minimum cost in the EU — Bulgaria, the cost in the above-mentioned countries is more than 3 times higher.
Taxation
The following graph clearly shows the size of tax part for the electricity unit supplied to private consumers. A leader with the minimal taxation is Malta (4.8), where a low VAT rate applies to the electricity and no other taxes are present. The largest tax on electricity is collected in Denmark, where almost 70% of the electricity cost for the consumer falls on the tax.
Low price for Solar Energy. German example
As we described earlier, Germany is one of the countries with the highest electricity cost. However, Solar Power Stations allow this country to produce much cheaper energy. Since 2015 the price of solar energy in Germany fell by more than 40%.
In 2017, the cost of energy generated by solar installations reached a record low — less than 5 cents per kilowatt/hour. At an auction in October, the minimum cost per unit of electricity was 0.0429 Euro. Compared with the cost of conventional electricity (Eurostat data table), solar energy can reduce the consumers’ monetary costs several times!
The German Association of the Solar Industry is actively advocating the adoption of regulations on the solar power expansion and assures that it will help achieve the government’s plans to reduce harmful emissions much earlier than planned in 2022.
