San Marino. Reduction of gas tariffs, agenda of Repubblica Futura
We receive and publish the agenda presented by Repubblica Futura.
The Great and General Council
a) having acknowledged the decisions taken by the Regulatory Authority for Public Services and Energy (briefly “Energy Authority”) on 11/11/2022 and relating to the gas and electricity tariffs respectively;
b) having regard to the approved increase in gas tariffs (a further +30%) and the transition to a variable tariff based on market conditions for electricity;
c) analyzed that:
• for gas – also thanks to the Swap contract signed at the beginning of 2022 by the AASS, which actually provides for a fixed price for 6 years of just under 44 euro cents per cubic meter for the gas itself (for an amount of consumption that almost entirely covers San Marino annual consumption) due to the specific reimbursements guaranteed to AASS itself should the market price exceed this level – the approved tariff is significantly higher than the real average cost that AASS incurs for the supply;
• for electricity, the tariff exposed to the market generates highly regressive effects compared to the current situation, creating a much greater percentage increase for those with low consumption (and therefore, presumably, live in smaller homes and/or have less disposable income ) than those with higher consumption;
d) having regard to article 9 of Law no. 120/2001 “Establishment of the Regulatory Authority for Public Services”, which provides for “The tariff determined annually by the Authority for individual services may be reduced by the Great and General Council on proposal of the Congress of State, through financial interventions undertaken with funds allocated and entered in a specific chapter of the budget, in implementation of the general objectives of an economic-social nature.”
requests to the State Congress
1. to present specific amendments to the provisional budget law for 2023 for:
• reduce the determined gas tariff to a level equal to the average cost that AASS itself incurs for the purchase of gas, taking into account the reimbursements obtained thanks to the Swap contract signed. The coverage of these expenses would derive precisely from the reimbursement from time to time obtained as a result of the contract itself;
• provide for special spreads on tariffs which make it possible to make increases progressive, ie increasing as consumption increases, and non-regressive;
• reduce the tariff determined on electricity for the lowest consumption brackets, bearing in mind that the weakest sections of the population belong to them and that, in any case, those who consume less must be encouraged, providing for the appropriate coverage;
also requesting the President of the Finance Commission
2. to convene a special hearing with the Energy Authority, at the earliest possible opportunity, to examine the choices made and the possible alternatives in depth.