The effects of the increase in electricity and gas prices are already being felt by the actors of the French economy. On Thursday morning, all professional sectors met with Bruno Le Maire, Olivia Grégoire and Roland Lescure to discuss the topic of energy. One figure emerged from the speech by the Minister of Economy and Finance that followed this meeting: 10%. This number is an estimate by France Industrie that corresponds to the reduction in French industrial production in the fourth quarter of 2022 due to the increase in energy bills.
In this sense, Bruno Le Maire also drew up an initial assessment of the charter signed a few weeks ago by energy providers to offer reasonable prices on equally reasonable conditions, in particular to SMEs. “There are still some abuses that have been reported to us, he said. They will be identified, controlled and we will name and shame energy providers who do not respect the commitments of this charter. In general, the results are positive and this charter is widely applied and respected. , but it is not acceptable that there is a single case of abuse.”
Duplication of the maximum limit of aid to companies
The Minister of Economy and Finance took the opportunity to recall the different solutions offered to companies to deal with this increase in their energy bill. On the one hand, Bruno Le Maire mentioned the negotiations with the European Commissioner for Competition, Margaret Verstager, whose aim was to simplify the aid system for companies that could not pay their bills. “The amount of the aid has a cap of two million euros, I asked that we double it to 4 million euros, he said. I want the device to be available from the first days of November”.
Extension of the “Iberian mechanism”
Bercy’s boss also wants to give a structural response to stop or at least stop the increase in energy prices. At this level, the ministers concerned and the President of the Republic have set themselves an objective: to achieve a decoupling of gas and electricity prices and extend to all European countries the “Iberian mechanism” that allows subsidizing gas used in power plants to have a lower price of electricity at the exit.
Source: BFM TV
