In Luxembourg: A plan to try to spend the winter warm
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In LuxembourgA plan to try to spend the winter warm
LUXEMBOURG – The government will present, this Friday, the main lines of its plan to face the dreaded gas supply problems this winter.
How can Luxembourg ensure that it can spend the winter warm? The subject will be at the heart of the Council of Government scheduled for Friday, and at the end in front of the Prime Minister, Xavier Bettel, and the Minister of Energy, Claude Turmes, will speak. The goal is clear. Faced with the explosion in prices and the risk of shortages linked to the war in Ukraine, Luxembourg has undertaken, like the other countries of the European Union, to reduce its gas consumption by 15% this winter. Inevitably, saving electricity or fuel oil would also help to achieve the objective.
While waiting to present, in detail, a set of measures recommended for municipalities, businesses and to launch a vast information campaign aimed at the general public, the government must validate the roadmap this Friday. Even if the country hopes not to use it, the load shedding plan in the event of a shortage will be redefined. The current consumption does not take into account a lasting disruption of supply. The Ministry of Energy is particularly concerned about the first months of 2023. This plan must define who will be deprived of supply first and then if the gas runs out.
A temperature of 20°C recommended in public buildings
Hospitals or individuals are protected customers, but the large companies that consume the most energy (ArcelorMittal, Goodyear, Guardian, DuPont, etc.) would be the first to be affected, confirmed Minister Claude Turmes in July. The essential. They have already taken strong measures to avoid reaching that point. The first phase of the European plan provides for the measures to be voluntary. But in the event of a real shortage, some will become binding. Luxembourg will therefore define its own, just in case. The discussions will also revolve around the recommendations made to municipalities and public buildings, to set an example. It has already been agreed that a temperature of 20°C will be recommended in public buildings.
The municipalities will at least initially benefit from a certain latitude. Some are already talking about reducing the light intensity of public lighting, reducing their Christmas market, taking care not to heat an unoccupied building even for a weekend. The temperature in schools, road lighting, nothing can be avoided. Municipalities and energy suppliers will also be called upon to help citizens modernize their heating methods, or install solar panels.
Should we expect help?
A vast incentive program to have one’s heating installation checked or renewed will target municipalities, public buildings, businesses and even individuals. On the business side, the Union luxembourgeoise des entreprises (UEL) confirmed Thursday to The essential that sectoral discussions were required and must be completed this Friday, to take into account the differences between industry, commerce and crafts. A voluntary agreement on savings measures should be offered. Data centers had great savings potential.
Should we expect help? A reduction in the VAT rate on gas and electricity from 8% (reduced) to 3% (super reduced)? Luxembourg already benefits from a derogation from the Commission which authorizes it to have, until 2032, more than seven categories benefiting from the super reduced rate of 3%. An advantage reserved for categories that already benefited from it on January 1, 2021. This is not the case for gas and electricity.
Index, energy check, targeted aid for the least favored households? If incentive measures are expected, support for households or businesses in the face of the explosion in prices, energy should, above all, be on the menu of the tripartite meeting in the coming weeks.