The government details the electricity damping device to help businesses and communities

Following consultations with electricity suppliers and representative consumer organizations, the Government specifies the terms of application of the "electricity buffer" which will come into force on January 1, 2023 for one year, according to three objectives .

Efficiency: the electricity buffer will protect consumers who have signed the highest contracts, with a reinforced unit aid ceiling.
Readability: the aid will be defined on an indicator present on the invoices and quotes of companies and local authorities, thanks to a simple calculation.
Speed: the system will be applied by electricity suppliers and consumers will feel the effects from the start of 2023.

The electricity buffer will be intended for all SMEs (less than 250 employees, €50 million in turnover and €43 million in balance sheet) not eligible for the tariff shield, and all local authorities and public establishments not having competitive activities, whatever their status.

For a consumer with an energy share of €350/Mwh (0,35 kWh), the electricity buffer will cover approximately 20% of the total electricity bill.

The aid will be integrated directly into consumers' electricity bills and the State will compensate suppliers. Consumers will only have to confirm to their supplier that they have the status of SME, association, community or public establishment and that they have no competitive activities.

This system will be added to the many measures already implemented to support businesses and local authorities in the face of rising electricity prices:

The reduction of taxation on electricity to its minimum level.
A tariff shield for VSEs and local authorities with less than 10 employees, 2 million euros in turnover and having an electricity meter with a power of less than 36 kVA.
A safety net for local communities.
A help desk for paying electricity, gas, heat and cold bills. This window is open to all companies until December 31, 2023. From the beginning of 2023, VSEs not eligible for the tariff shield and SMEs will benefit from the electricity shock absorber and will therefore no longer be able to file a file at the help desk. on their electricity bills.

How will the electricity shock absorber be calculated?

This aid will be calculated on the "energy share" of a given contract, i.e. the average annual price of electricity excluding the costs of routing the electricity through the network (network tariff or Turpe) and without taxes.

This "energy share", present in the contracts and commercial proposals of the vast majority of VSEs and SMEs, is expressed in €/Mwh or in €/kWh.

The shock absorber will reduce the average annual price of the "energy share" to €180/Mwh (or €0,18/kWh) on half of the volumes of electricity consumed, within the limit of a unit aid ceiling of the "energy share" of the contract at €500/Mwh.

The maximum reduction in the unit price will be €160/Mwh on the total consumption (or €0,16/kWh).