A few years ago, Spain was one of the frontrunners regarding their electricity costs all over Europe. Exploding gas prices were the reason why electricity became that expensive.
In 2021, the Spanish government therefore enforced a new electricity pricing model. Throughout the day, the electricity prices rise to an enormous high, while on the other hand, electricity is quite inexpensive at night. This pricing model was introduced to not only relieve private households in keeping their expenses to a minimum. But also – according to the Spanish government – to foster an understanding for sustainability and climate protection. Yet, in order to prevent great electricity expenses, you may have to wrap around your recent kind of lifestyle.
Today, in comparison to other European countries, Spain is no longer on top of the pyramid of electricity prices. Nevertheless, the in 2021 introduced electricity pricing model is still in use. The Spanish press calculated that if people start to manage their electricity consumption effectively, households could save up to 300 Euros a year. Therefore, to get around high bills and save some money, you have to avoid the following mistakes!
Washing your laundry whenever you feel like it
One home appliance that robs a good amount of electricity is the washing machine. For that reason, Spanish people wash their laundry in most cases at certain times in a week. As the electricity costs are lower at night, you may be tempted to use the washing machine in the middle of the night. But especially in the south of Spain, most buildings do not have very thick walls. Because of that, doing your laundry at night might get on the nerves of your neighbours.
Instead – if your needs allow it – you should wash only on the weekends. On Saturdays and Sundays, the electricity prices are much lower than on any day during the week.
What else to keep in mind?
However, the washing machine is not the only electricity-draining home appliance. These also include electric stoves, heating and air conditioning systems. This means that, in the peak usage hours from 10 am to 2 pm and 6 pm to 10 pm within the week, you should reduce cooling, heating and using the stove in order to keep your expenses low. From 8 am to 10 am, from 2 pm to 6 pm, as well as from 10 pm to 12 am, the electricity costs are a bit lower. The least expansive usage of electricity is during the night hours from 12 am to 8 am. The costs on weekends and holidays are equal to the ones during the nights. Nevertheless, Spanish media like “El Mundo” and “La Razón” publish the hourly rates of electricity prices on a daily basis to help people plan their consumption.
Consequently, consumers in Spain are responsible for the amount of their electricity expanses themselves. Even though there are rigid fixed costs such as the fee for the transmission and distribution of energy, taxes and grants for the renewable energy support program. There is still a bit of controll for the consumers to manage their own expanses.
