France to cap energy price hikes at 15 pct in 2023

Paris [France], September 15: Energy price hikes for households in France will be capped at 15 percent next year, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said here on Wednesday. The tariff shield for gas will kick in in January and for electricity in February.
According to Borne, the measure will help French households save "around 160 euros (160 U.S. dollars) per month of savings for electricity and 175 euros per month for gas."
At a press conference after a Council of Ministers' meeting, Borne said that the country's gas storage facilities were 95 percent full in preparation for possible shortages this winter.
"In the most likely scenarios, if everyone takes responsibility, there will be no energy cuts," she said, adding that "only sobriety and European solidarity will allow us to avoid cuts."
Recalling the 230-million-euro financial aid package for households that was adopted by the country's parliament in July, Borne said that "We have taken strong measures to protect the French."
Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said that, compared to other European countries, France has anticipated the increase in energy prices with the energy tariff shield and as consequence it now has the lowest inflation rate in the European Union (EU).
He noted that his country will continue working with the European Commission for European solidarity.
Le Maire said that the energy tariff shield was "essential" to avoid "adding an economic crisis to an energetic crisis."
Calling for individual and collective efforts, Minister for Energy Transition Agnes Pannier-Runacher said that a new EcoWatt website, to be launched on Sept. 22, will enable the public to track the country's electricity consumption in real time and to receive relevant alerts. (1 euro = 1 U.S. dollar)
Source: Xinhua