Italy Power Prices Seen Rising 40% Next Quarter, Minister Says
Italy Power Prices Seen Rising 40% Next Quarter, Minister Says
(Bloomberg) -- Italy’s power prices are set to increase by 40% in the third quarter as a global natural gas supply crunch starts to impact the country ahead of the cold season, Ecological Transition Minister Roberto Cingolani said.
“These things must be said, we have a duty to face them,” Cingolani was reported as saying by Ansa newswire. He noted that the country had already experienced a 20% uptick in electricity prices in the second quarter.
The increase is part of a rally across Europe that’s set to boost bills for consumers all over the continent. German electricity prices for next year, and the equivalent benchmark in France, have surged to records as European gas inventories aren’t rising fast enough for the winter, while global demand increases.
With about a month to go before the start of the heating season, coal reserves in European ports are also at the lowest level for this time of year since 2016.
Higher energy prices in turn risk accelerating inflation, hurting economies that are just recovering from coronavirus lockdowns.
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