To reduce the increase of energy price, the government plans two interventions. The first will serve to contain the cost boom expected for the first quarter of 2022, increasing by at least five hundred million euro the allocation of two billion already provided for in the budget law. The second provides instead a diplomatic operation and will be consummated at the European Council in mid-December, when Italy – together with France and Spain – will ask for a plan for the common storage of natural gas in the EU.
Meanwhile, other measures to limit increases in energy bills, included in the Senate, are arriving in the Senate chamber a decree which Palazzo Madama is called to convert into law. In particular, regarding electricity, it is established that the Regulatory Authority for energy, networks and the environment will cancel, for the fourth quarter of 2021, the rates relating to general system charges applied to domestic users and low voltage non-domestic users, for other uses, with available power up to 16,5 kW.
As for the gas, in order to contain the price increases of methane used for combustion for civil and industrial uses, it is established that the VAT rate applicable to the aforementioned methane gas consumption - estimated or actual for the months of October, November and December 2021 - is of 5% instead of the current rates of 10% and 22% which apply according to consumption or the type of activity performed. In the event that accounting takes place on the basis of estimated consumption, the 5% rate will be applied to the difference deriving from the amounts recalculated on the basis of actual consumption attributable, also as a percentage, to the months of October, November and December 2021.
It is also expected the strengthening of the social bonus. In fact, for the quarter October-December 2021, the concessions relating to electricity tariffs granted to economically disadvantaged domestic customers and to domestic customers in serious health conditions and the compensation for the supply of natural gas (due to the same subjects, in order to guarantee a reduction in expenditure net of taxes approximately equal to 15%) are redetermined by the Arera, in order to minimize the increases in expenditure for supplies, foreseen for this fourth quarter.
A notation. The decree being examined by the courtroom actually contains many other rules which have nothing to do with energy bills. For example, rules governing the traceability of tobacco products and the legitimacy of their circulation towards consumers; methods to be followed for the rationalization of accounting procedures and for the improvement of the representation of the management results of entry in the general state account; the adjustment of the regulation for the definition of the criteria and parameters for determining the consistency of the workforce of the staff in educational institutions; the identification of the finalized urgent interventions the enhancement or adaptation of the safety of the infrastructures; repeal and modification of implementing measures.
