EU's Vestager cautious on power subsidy plan during Berlin trip

Kitco Media
By Reuters
Published:
Updated:
Reuters
BERLIN, May 8 (Reuters) - EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager advised caution on any plan that would subsidise energy for large companies on Monday, days after Germany's economy ministry introduced plans for a subsidised industrial power price.


"Obviously great care is needed if you start subsidizing energy for businesses which are in competition with businesses which don't have the same chances," Vestager said at a news briefing in Berlin, adding that the commission had yet to receive sufficient information to assess the plan. The economy ministry on Friday presented a concept under which companies that compete internationally would pay a subsidised price of 6 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for 80% of basic consumption. The proposed subsidy would be in place until 2030 and would cost between 25 billion euros ($27.56 billion) and 30 billion euros based on current market prices, according to the plan. Both Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Finance Minister Christian Lindner have pushed back on the initiative, saying that prolonged subsidies were not beneficial for the economy. (Reporting by Andreas Rinke, writing by Miranda Murray, editing by Friederike Heine)

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