In the European Union (EU), household electricity prices rose by 2.4% on average between the second half of 2014 and the second half of 2015 to reach 21.1 euros per 100 kWh. Since 2008, electricity prices in the EU have risen by 33%.
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Across the EU Member States, household electricity prices in the second half of 2015 ranged from below €10 per 100 kWh in Bulgaria to more than 30 euros per 100 kWh in Denmark.
Household gas prices went down by 1.7% on average in the EU between the second halves of 2014 and 2015 to stand at 7.1 euros per 100 kWh. Since 2008, gas prices in the EU have risen by 14%.
Among Member States, household gas prices in the second half of 2015 ranged from slightly over 3 euros per 100 kWh in both Romania and Hungary to almost 12 euros per 100 kWh in Sweden.
Taxes and levies in the EU made up on average a third (33%) of the electricity price charged to households in the second half of 2015, and almost a quarter (23%) of the gas price.
Across the EU Member States, the highest increase in household electricity prices in national currency between the second half of 2014 and the second half of 2015 was registered by far in Latvia (+26.8%) and Belgium (+15.1%), followed by Bulgaria (+6.9%), Romania (+6.1%), the Netherlands (+5.8%), Italy (+3.8%), France (+3.4%) and Portugal (+2.4%).
In contrast, the most noticeable decrease was observed in Cyprus (-22.0%), well ahead of Lithuania (-5.8%), Ireland (-3.2%), Estonia (-2.6%), Croatia (-1.5%) and the United Kingdom (-1.4%).
Expressed in euro, average household electricity prices in the second half of 2015 were lowest in Bulgaria (€9.6 per 100 kWh) and Hungary (€11.5) and highest in Denmark (€30.4) and Germany (€29.5). The average electricity price in the EU was €21.1 per 100 kWh. ■
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