The deadline is approaching for many French households. On June 30, after five reminder letters, the regulated gas sales tariff (TRVG) ended. Despite a period still full of uncertainty about prices in Europe, the end of this protective tariff, set each month by the public authorities, hitherto marketed by incumbent suppliers – mainly by Engie (ex-GDF), but also, for a small fraction, by local distribution companies.
The Council of State deemed it contrary to European law and to the liberalization of the energy market, at the request of competing companies, in 2017. On the other hand, the Energy-climate law of November 2019 saves the “tariff blue” from EDF, that of electricity, a good “not substitutable” And ” first need “according to the highest administrative court in the country.
In France, nearly a quarter of gas-consuming households still have a subscription at the regulated tariff. Or 2.55 million households (heating, hot water, cooking), according to an April count. Not to mention the approximately 3 million whose market offers are indexed to the said tariff. These are offered either by Engie or by alternative suppliers, born of the opening up to competition, since the 2000s.
” Do not panic “
No immediate need to rush. Even without having opted for another type of contract by June 30, regulated rate subscribers will continue to receive gas thereafter. No threat of cutting. “There is no need to panic at the end of June, there is no need to panic”first reassures the consumer association Consumption, Housing, and Living Environment (CLCV), through the voice of its general delegate, François Carlier.
At 1er July, die-hards will automatically be transferred to a changeover offer reserved for them, still with their historical supplier. The law imposes this implementation, without specifying the modalities.. “The government has asked Engie to make an offer in the continuity of the calculation of the gas TRV”declares the entourage of Agnès Pannier-Runacher, Minister of Energy Transition, as if it were a question of defusing a sensitive subject. “De facto, the public authorities allow the establishment of a similar regulated tariff”recognizes Mr. Carlier.
At Engie, the future ad hoc contract is called “Passerelle”; valid without expiry date and cancellable free of charge. As with the TRVG, its tariff will change each month according to an index recommended by the Energy Regulation Commission (CRE), an independent administrative authority. With a few nuances compared to the previous calculation formula, the new one will always take into account supply costs by suppliers – mostly for monthly products. In addition, the regulator will publish a full reference price for information on a monthly basis, including other costs as well.
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