Finns are increasingly turning to mobile apps to help them find better energy deals amid soaring prices and wildly fluctuating costs per unit.
Many Finnish electricity companies have launched their own applications, and the Finns have answered the call. For example, according to YLE, the Helsinki-based company Helen has recorded some 80,000 new app users within three months. Such apps allow users to switch from fixed-price contracts to those which reflect real-time market prices.
For companies, using applications makes it easier to handle peak-hour operations. At the same time, consumers can choose a quieter and less expensive moment to wash the dishes or clothes or to shower.
Energy-saving campaigns also seem to have had an impact, as according to statistics released in October, energy consumption decreased by 10% between January and June this year and the downward trend is expected to continue.
Earlier in autumn, the Finnish government decided to lower VAT on electricity from 24% down to 10% between December 2022 and April 2023. The weather affects electricity prices as both Copernicus, the EU’s Earth observation programme and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) have predicted a milder winter than usual.
(Pekka Vänttinen | EURACTIV.com)
Source: euractiv.com
