fenman

We all know what is going on with energy costs across Europe right now.
As a potential expat to Italy, I would like to know from expats currently residing in Italy how much they pay
for their gas and electrics, both standing charges and consumption charges.

I would like to sit down and so some calcs to compare costs in both countries.
I guess in the winter the UK is more expensive whilst in the summer Italy would be because of air con.
The prices quoted here in the UK for next winter seem a lot higher than those in
the rest of europe.
​​​​​​Thanks

Listen Very Carefully

Be aware that many areas of Italy are actually colder in the winter than the UK.When I lived in Umbria there were regular snowfalls and frost and in my last winter there the temperature fell to minus 13 and this was not up a mountain but obviously the length of winter was shorter.So a lot will depend on where you will be living in Italy

fenman

Yes I thought of that, also properties are a lot different. But it would be useful to know the standing charges and consumption costs.

philat98

It must have warmed up since you were here LVC. In 10 years it has only snowed once at 300m above sea level. We only heat the house from December to mid March and then only a few hours each day. A big difference is that the sun shines a lot more in Italy even in mid Winter.
Since Italy is entirely dependent on imported energy things might be a bit tricky this winter.

modicasa

Standing charges vary depending on your supply. The minimum is now 3Kw, and goes up in stages to 10Kw which is the maximum for a residential address.
How much is you use is open ended. ON a 3 Kw house, electric hot water and an aircon unit in the bedroom but which doesnt run 24/7 at glacial temperatures I pay around 160 euros every two months and that includes my TV licence. On a 3Kw house, you will pay around 50 euros bimonthly with no usage. All of this will change over the next few months.

fenman

Would you say in your experience that cost of gas and electrics in Italy will be cheaper than UK?

If I am not mistaken you live in Sicily so likely you do not need much heating.

Plan B

We have a 6 Kw supply into a small, modern, very well insulated house, using only electricity (so not representative of the majority of Italian properties). Nevertheless the following shows the breakdown of of charges from our most recent bill. The costs so far for the 8 months in 2022 are just over double the costs for the same period in 2021.

fenman

367 for eight months!!

do you live in the sahara or something?

rip off uk will be that per month.

Margaret M

I think you will find that tthe 367 is for two months, not 8. Plan B was comparing the 8 months of this year with that of the previous year when he mentioned 8 months.

philat98

[QUOTE=Margaret M;13138387]I think you will find that tthe 367 is for two months, not 8. Plan B was comparing the 8 months of this year with that of the previous year when he mentioned 8 months.[/QUOTEMy bill is similar to PlanB. We use solar water heating and without aircon.
This is the bill for August from ENI.

C.2s

I would say that in our experience the cost of electricity and gas has been more or less the same here in Italy as it is in the UK.
​​​​​​​​That sort of thing always depends on individual habits of course, but I'm not sure we've seen any difference because of the climate. We live in Lazio, and whilst it is hotter in the summer, and generally more predictable what weather you get at what time of year and yes there's a lot more sunshine , Italy is a more mountainous country so the wind from the mountains means that the average temperature here during the winter is only a couple of degrees warmer...so you still need the heating on.

And that also the situation is quite similar in some ways when trying to predict what the cost will be in the future, because:

1. it's an international situation 2.both countries have governments in limbo (until after the Tories sort out their leadership and after the general election here on the 25th) and therefore it's hard to get past the sound bites and find the concrete details of what help, if any, there might be in the short term
3 . there's the influence of regional differences in Italy (regional governments a bit like the devolved national governments in the UK). Basilicata is supposed to be giving free gas to it's residents!

4. Both countries have various strengths in terms of energy supply that they might exploit (wind in the UK, proximity to N Africa in Italy) that might help in the medium term
So I can sort of see what you're trying to do by trying to calculate the cost, but I'd advise just budgeting for the same as you do in the UK

Plan B

You're quite right Margaret M, that bill was for 2 months: thank you.

Accetturese

We live in a 3 bed end terrace. No mains gas, no air con, no central heating. We have the 3kw electricity supply.
our village is 1000m above sea level, so we get regular snow in winter but our summers are a tiny bit cooler. We have lived here for 5 years.
We only use gas (bottled) for cooking on the hob, and get through 3 bottles per year, at €28 each.
Our main source of heating is a wood fired stove in the living room, we pay around €600 per year for wood. We have a mobile gas heater that we use if we only need a little warmth in the evenings in late autumn and early spring, gas used included in the 3 bottles per year.
We have no heating upstairs, apart from a small paraffin heater that we use in the bathroom, a 20ltr bottle of fuel costs €50 ish and lasts us 2 years.
Electricity cost us €760 last year. So far this year it has totalled €890.
Property tax costs us €200 per year, and water this year was €170.

pugliese

i think you'll find the gas bottles don't cost 28 euros any more

Accetturese

That is what we paid a month ago. The smaller one for our bbq was €20. I think we might get 'mates rates', brother-in-law gets them delivered to his farm and we get them from him for the same price that he pays.
Or it may be a regional thing - why, how much are you paying?