The draft law on measures to alleviate the effects of the energy crisis in Andorra, which aims to establish mechanisms and legal guarantees to minimize the impact of the possible scenario of energy shortage, has entered the General Council as a matter of urgency. The standard provides for the promotion of mandatory energy saving measures for the public and private sectors.
The Executive, represented by the Minister of the Environment, Agriculture and Sustainability, Sílvia Calvó, considers that the law is based on the principles of "anticipation, protection and guarantee", with the aim of keeping essential services running and prioritizing "the needs of the country” in these times of energy shortage. According to Calvó, this law is promoted "out of political responsibility, to increase the security of citizens and of the country's companies, but, at the same time, with the desire to never have to go so far as to apply it in its entirety" . The spirit of this law takes into account the situation of energy crisis in Europe, with price increases and restrictions in neighboring countries, which are the main energy suppliers to the principality.
The legal text proposes three different levels of measures. The first provides for the set of provisional measures that favor the reduction of energy consumption in the public sector and the business world. These actions will only be carried out if the measures used in the framework of prior agreement are not sufficient.
These mandatory measures will be linked to issues such as the use of energy in public buildings, restrictions on the use of heating, air conditioning or lighting, or the prohibition or restriction of the use of certain devices. The measures will also ensure the use of certain energy sources in private buildings, shops, offices, industries and other establishments open to the public. The level of exterior lighting of buildings and monuments, whether public or private, shop windows, billboards and illuminated advertisements, will also be monitored.
The second level of action is planned to deal with possible electricity supply cuts as a result of the temporary absence of energy from neighboring countries. Thus, interruptions may not affect the operation of public and essential services. It is planned to apply rotation criteria between sectors, ensuring that all those susceptible to interruption of supply are so in a comparable number of hours.
The regulations provide that energy distributors announce temporary supply interruptions at least 24 hours in advance. Said interruptions cannot exceed two hours a day or three, exceptionally. The technical feasibility of the contingency plans must be evaluated by the operator and the Ministry ensures equal distribution.
The third assumption has to do with the exceptional cases in which the previous measures are not sufficient. The Executive can then decree the situation of energy crisis and adopt the necessary measures, after notifying the General Council. The declaration may be valid for a maximum of fifteen days, except for an extension established by the General Council. The objective is that the package of measures that is put in place allows saving 15% of energy expenditure, without reducing the investment, management and operation capacity of the single operator FEDA (Forces Elèctriques d'Andorra). The measures and recommendations will be complemented by a moderate increase in electricity rates and, in turn, new economic support aid.
The immediate application measures have to do with a 30% reduction in the energy consumption of Christmas lights. The lighting period will be 6.5 weeks and with the limit of twelve at night. Likewise, it is stipulated for the private sector that the interior temperature of the premises in the summer months is not lower than 26 degrees, nor higher than 20 degrees in winter. In hotels, customers are recommended to adopt these temperature limits. There are also indications for lighting shop windows and advertisements.
The increase in rates, yet to be decided, will limit the economic impact of electricity prices in neighboring countries, from which 80% of the electricity consumed by the principality is imported. The increases will still place the electricity bill below what is paid in Spain and France. The forecast is that the increase reaches 9% for moderate consumption and up to 17% for the highest.
In return, the accompanying measures for citizens and companies plan to allocate 16.9 million euros in aid. In fact, households with an income of less than 1.3 times the Economic Limit for Social Cohesion (LECS) will have an aid of 150 euros to pay for heating. The Government also plans to invest 15 million euros to capitalize the FEDA and guarantee investments in infrastructure.
