The increase in social bonuses for electricity and gas for families with an ISEE level up to 15,000 euros has been confirmed.
In Italy, ISEE is used to evaluate household income in order to determine eligibility for government assistance.
With the sharp drop in the wholesale prices of energy products, the price of electricity for the average family receiving assistance in the second quarter of 2023 is set to drop by 55.3 per cent.
The strengthening of the electricity and gas bonuses for families with the ISEE level up to 15,000 euros was also confirmed (with the ISEE level for large families with at least 4 dependent children rising to 30,000 euros).
These interventions go hand in hand with the confirmation of the 5% VAT reduction on heat management, district heating and gas.
Also, for gas, the negative tariff component UG2, introduced in April of last year by Arera and applied to consumption up to 5,000 sm3/year, will be gradually reduced and then eliminated during the second quarter of 2023.
The performance of the energy markets saw wholesale gas prices drop sharply in the current quarter, influenced by various factors: a reduction in European demand (-13 per cent in 2022 compared to 2021), a limited recovery in Asian demand for LNG, the recovery of operations or new liquefaction terminals in the United States and regasification in Europe.
The mild temperatures of the winter of 2022-2023 favoured a limited use of European storages, which in mid-March were still full at approximately 57 per cent of their capacity.
Forward prices indicate fewer tense conditions for the balance of gas supply and demand in the second quarter of 2023.
In this context, forward electricity prices also moved downwards, after the sharp declines already recorded.
Already in the first quarter of 2023, based on preliminary data, the single national price of electricity (PUN) was down by around 36 per cent compared to the fourth quarter of 2022.
