Prosecution to investigate 'historic' electricity bill hike
Saturday, January 21, 2017 @ 9:28 PM
CIVIL prosecutors at Spain's Supreme Court have opened an inquiry into the historic electricity price hike which came into effect yesterday (Friday), right in the middle of Spain's coldest 'freezewave' in five years which has seen snow on Mediterranean beaches for the first time since 1983.
The court prosecution service says it wants to investigate the reason for the 'successive increases' in household electricity bills 'in the interests of consumer protection', availing itself of its freedom to do so under the Law of Civil Judgment, reformed in 2014 to allow criminal court legal experts to take action under their own steam for the benefit of the wider public.
In the last few weeks, the end price of electricity to the consumer has shot up to levels not seen since December 2013, and those who pay a fixed monthly quota adjusted twice-yearly are now seeing from their 'information only' bills that their consumption is way above this set figure.
The National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) is investigating the matter to see whether providers are operating an illegal monopoly, whilst the ministry of energy, tourism and digital agenda, led by Álvaro Nadal, is also looking into the matter, bowing to pressure from consumer groups and the government's opposition.
Electricity use has rocketed by 113% across the country as a result of the polar winds which hit the mainland and Balearic Islands on Tuesday, bringing temperatures ranging from -10ºC to -21.5ºC overnight and leaving four inches of snow on beaches in the provinces of Alicante and Valencia.
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com