Energy crisis – Extension of measures and government repayment plan with installments for bills

A government  plan is coming for paying heating bills in installments as part of short-term measures to protect family budgets from the energy crisis.

According to information, the plan is in the works and may be announced before the end of the year. So far, it is in the initial stage and it is being worked out how and what accounts will benefit.

At the same time, the possibility of extending the measures that have already been announced after 2022 is open – which include subsidizing electricity bills, doubling the heating allowance and a 15% discount for domestic gas consumers.

The Commission’s anti-energy toolkit is unfettering the government’s hands, as measures to support household incomes propose a moratorium on paying energy bills for vulnerable customers and small businesses in dire straits, allowing households to existing and new installment debts and emergency replenishments for households with payment meters, so that they are allowed to repay these supplements in installments.

As stated by the Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis – during today’s meeting with the Vice President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas – “I hold from the comments of the Commission something I consider particularly important and we will adopt it: “Our fellow citizens, who may see a sharp increase in heating costs, will be able to repay their obligations within a reasonable period of time, through a system of regulations, so that the financial burden during the winter is not too great.”

Window for new interventions against accuracy

The government and financial staff have also left an open window for a future increase in the energy protection measures of more than 500 million Euros. The financial staff is closely monitoring the course of the revaluations – after the jump in international energy prices – reassessing the situation in one to two months. The priority in social policy is maintained and the assurance is provided for additional assistance if needed, especially when the forecasts indicate that the energy crisis may last longer than initially estimated, until the second quarter of 2022.

International price developments have more than doubled the energy package to € 500 million compared to the prime minister’s announcements at the Thessaloniki International Fair in early September, and inflationary pressures are a headache for the financial staff as they pose a threat to both citizens’ incomes and the recovery of the economy. The data so far show that 2021 will close with a growth rate of 6.1%. The primary deficit, however, has reached 13 billion euros or about 7% of GDP.