Premier: Gas Prices for Households Would Go Up by 30% without Energy Aid (2)

Bratislava, 3 December (TASR) - If the government didn't approve energy aid for households, gas and heating prices would rise by 30 percent and electricity prices by 20 percent in 2026, Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) told a news conference following the government session on Wednesday, with representatives of the coalition parties in attendance. According to Fico, state energy aid will be provided to some 90 percent of Slovak households, and it won't cost €420 million as previously announced, but only some €385 million. "We're providing energy aid in a targeted manner for the first time. The government's decision won't apply to all 100 percent of households in Slovakia. The energy aid provided by the Slovak government will concern 90 percent of households, while 10 percent of households with high incomes won't be eligible for aid from the Slovak government," said Fico. The premier noted that the total amount to be provide is ultimately lower than originally planned. "We planned expenditures amounting to some €420 million at a coalition council meeting. After the latest calculations, we'll only spend some €385 million on energy aid for 90 percent of Slovak households. This sum of almost €400 million will be covered from EU money," he specified. Fico added that the energy assistance will take two forms: a breakdown of electricity and gas bills, and an energy voucher for heating. "One form of assistance will concern heating and gas. If we hadn't made this decision, the price of gas and heating for Slovak households would have risen by 30 percent. If we hadn't made the decision on energy assistance, electricity would have gone up by 20 percent. We've once again protected Slovak households. There will only be an administrative increase of about 2 percent," added the prime minister. NOTE: This story has been extended to include the last paragraph am/df