The Iberian press refuses to sell cheaper gas to France and Morocco

While Spain has just had European guarantees to limit the price of gas that generates electricity, the Iberian press is worried that these low prices set by Brussels will benefit France and Morocco. The very idea that the kingdom can buy cheaper gas does not please.

If the idea of ​​Spain and Portugal was to create two gas markets, one with a local consumption subsidy and another with market prices similar to the rest of Europe, at European Commission level this proposal deemed unfair was not validated, in the midst of the energy crisis in Europe, especially since Madrid asked to make European group purchases of energy.

Spain and Portugal asked in their proposal aimed at reducing the impact of the increase in gas prices at world level for their two countries, the authorization of the European Commission to subsidize the production of production plants using fuels fossil fuels (gas, coal and cogeneration plants) in order to compensate for the increase in the cost of their fuels.

Madrid wanted to charge low local gas prices and resell energy at a high price in order to win on several counts as the world is in an energy crisis and the Commission was called upon to stem a possible crisis in the country Iberian. But Brussels refused this idea where Spain would do well.

“The Spaniards will pay 2,100 million for France and Morocco to access the gas limit”, headlined the Spanish site Vozpopuli, making an estimate of the cost of this refusal from Brussels which will allow neighboring countries of Spain to buy gas at the same price.

Believing that Europe “forces Spain to maintain the exchange of electricity with France and Morocco”, the site predicts that the indirect impact will be “an increase in exports to neighboring countries up to their maximum capacity “.

And to judge that the subsidy which will lower gas consumption prices will have an “attraction effect on neighboring countries”.

The energy sector believes that the agreement negotiated with Brussels will immediately have a sharp reduction in the cost of production plants using fossil fuels and the consequent drop in the market price of electricity in Spain

The media does not accept that France enjoys the same advantages, explaining that the export capacity to France in 2021 amounted to 20.9 terawatt hours (TWh), of which 7.8 TWh were exported, while imports amounted to 14.1 TWh.

According to forecasts, the production of gas and coal power plants in Spain will increase by 27.1 TWh to cover the increase in exports to France, the same source indicates.

And to estimate that Morocco might also take advantage of the situation since wholesale electricity prices will be subsidized and should buy 6.9 TWh of electricity, judging that the price in Spain would be “much lower than its own variable production costs”.