The electricity prices for industrial consumers in Ukraine are two times higher than in Eastern Europe, according to the data of the Market Operator as of April 1, 2020.
According to the following websites https://www.oree.com.ua/ and https://www.nordpoolgroup.com/maps/#/nordic, in particular, the base cost of electricity for Ukrainian industrial consumers is EUR 51.01 per MWh, for Polish is EUR 30.23, for Romanian is EUR 25.69, for Hungarian is EUR 25.78, and for Slovak is EUR24.1.
The cost of electricity for daylight hours in Ukraine is EUR 58.85 per MWh, while in Poland it costs EUR 31.7, in Romania and Hungary is EUR 26.81, in Slovakia is EUR 24.35.
According to Nord Pool, the European power exchange, the tariffs are even lower in Western Europe. Thus, the cost of electricity in Benelux is EUR 22.5 per MWh, in France is EUR 21.86, in Germany is EUR 19.95.
The countries of the Scandinavian Peninsula, under support of national economies during coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, reduced electricity prices to minimum levels. Thus, the tariffs in Norway, Sweden and Denmark dropped to EUR 4.58 per MWh.
As Ukrainian industrial company Interpipe said earlier on Wednesday, April 1, in the last week of March in Ukraine rise in price of electricity for industrial consumers was recorded, while the tariff increased from UAH 1.3 per kWh to unprecedented UAH 1.68 per kWh, or 35% compared to February.
At the same time, Interpipe urged Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal and the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission to take the necessary regulatory measures to stabilize the electricity market. The government needs to take measures to prevent the rise in electricity prices by one of the key market players – National Nuclear Generating Company Energoatom, the group said in a statement.
“Amid COVID-19 pandemic, the governments of Europe and the United States are developing plans to support industry, introduce additional tools to stabilize the business. The situation is opposite in Ukraine. We, as a business, solve the problems of transferring employees, providing them with protective equipment, and purchase equipment for local hospitals. All this is amid falling volumes of orders. In response, we get a 35% increase in electricity prices and, as a result, a significant deterioration in our competitiveness in the falling market,” Interpipe Chief Financial Officer Denys Morozov said.
Interpipe is one of the ten largest manufacturers of seamless pipes in the world, is the third largest producer of seamless-rolled railway wheels in the world.
Interpipe incorporates five key assets: PJSC Interpipe NTRP, Interpipe NMPP, Interpipe NIKO TUBE, Interpipe VTORMET, and Interpipe STEEL.
