Let There Be Light
A meme on Facebook caught my eye this past Sunday and I had to share it. It goes,
"O final, tiña razón Rajoy cando decía
que cando chovese iamos aforrar en
luz. Xa levamos dous días sen ela."
Roughly translated, it means, "In the end, Rajoy was right when he said we would save on electricity when it rained. We've been without it for two days." It all refers back to about a week and a half ago. They were the coldest days of the winter, and the deregulated electricity market raised prices to maximums of over €100 per megawatt. That translated into harsh price increases in most people's electric bill. A medium household's bill was expected to go up by ten to twenty euros. Then there is the fixed part of the bill, which includes the kilowatts contracted (The more things you can plug in simultaneously, the more you pay. We have the smallest possible, 2.2 kw, and can't turn on the microwave and the hair dryer at the same time.), having the meter on the wall and being connected to the installation, and a special tax on electricity. That didn't go up, but it went up plenty last year, and in this case, what goes up, stays up.
Of course, there's also the 21% sales tax added on at the end, which is charged on the entire amount of the bill, special tax included. So, we also pay sales tax on the special tax. Someone is getting away with murder, especially when all the energy companies make billions in profits at the end of the year. They also have enough left over to pay six figure salaries to the ex-politicians sitting on their executive boards, many of whom were hired immediately after leaving office.
But, the other day, at the height of the cold weather and unaffordable electric rates, President Rajoy was asked if he would do anything to help the consumers. He merely stated that as soon as it started to rain, and the hydroelectric plants started to produce, that the rates would come down.
Of course, there's also the 21% sales tax added on at the end, which is charged on the entire amount of the bill, special tax included. So, we also pay sales tax on the special tax. Someone is getting away with murder, especially when all the energy companies make billions in profits at the end of the year. They also have enough left over to pay six figure salaries to the ex-politicians sitting on their executive boards, many of whom were hired immediately after leaving office.
But, the other day, at the height of the cold weather and unaffordable electric rates, President Rajoy was asked if he would do anything to help the consumers. He merely stated that as soon as it started to rain, and the hydroelectric plants started to produce, that the rates would come down.
Well, since the cold snap, the rain has fallen, and so has the snow. In four days we've gone from drought here in Galicia, to overflowing rivers. But the price per megawatt is still up there, in the clouds. But now, some people aren't spending anything on electricity, because they haven't got any. The three or four successive storms that have crossed Galicia and northern Spain since Thursday have knocked down power lines all over the place. There are still almost two thousand clients without electricity. So, I guess Rajoy was right, we're paying less because it's rained. And we're now in the dark. If no kilowatts are being consumed, the bill will be cheaper.
Comments
Post a Comment