Eneco will sign fixed energy price contracts for the first time since 2021

Eneco has started selling energy contracts in which the price for gas and electricity is fixed over a longer period of time. The energy supplier, with about 2 million customers in the Netherlands, has not closed fixed-price contracts since the autumn of 2021 due to the rapidly rising energy prices.

For the time being, Eneco is offering the fixed contracts for a term of six months, but a spokesperson indicated that it is “certainly the intention” to also offer contracts in the future in which the rates are set for a longer period than just a half year. By then, the rules for terminating permanent contracts will have been adjusted, which is planned for April 1.

The intention is that the exit fee that customers have to pay to get out of the contracts will more closely correspond to the amount that the energy supplier will not earn as a result of terminating the contract. “We will then need all the details from the Authority for Consumers & Markets (ACM) to be able to calculate what the fine amount would be,” the spokesperson said.

The rate for the fixed contract is currently just above that of the national energy price cap. This makes it particularly interesting for households whose consumption exceeds the maximum amount of gas and electricity where they can benefit from the reduced price.

The government introduced the price cap this year to ease the financial pain of rising gas and electricity prices. The fact that energy is so much more expensive is in large part because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and ongoing fears about gas shortages. But now gas prices are falling thanks to well-stocked gas storage facilities in Europe and the relatively mild winter weather.