Klaipėdos energija AB, which provides centralized heat to residents of Klaipėda and the region, announces the calculated heating prices for the month of May. They will be almost 9 percent lower than last May and almost 4 percent lower than this April.
In May, consumers using the company’s services will pay 5.48 cents per kilowatt hour (ct/kWh) for heat without VAT. This is almost 11.5 percent less than last May and almost 3.5 percent less than April this year.
One of the reasons for the drop in prices in the last month of spring is the cheapening of biofuel, the main energy resource used to produce heat. In May, it will be purchased at a 6.3 percent lower price than in April. The average price of heat sold by independent producers also decreased by about 21.5 percent, while the price of purchased natural gas raw material increased by 18.8 percent. Due to the decreasing demand and consumption of gas for heat production, the component of natural gas distribution costs included in the heat price is also increasing, which is fixed according to the company’s annual capacity and needs, but when calculating the monthly price, it is recalculated and divided according to the forecasted consumption.
In May, about 55 percent of the total heat price is made up of the variable part – the costs of biofuel, gas, electricity, water and other variable costs and heat purchased from independent heat producers. The remaining part of the heat price consists of fixed costs. These are costs incurred by the company regardless of the amount of heat produced and supplied to consumers. They consist of personnel, depreciation (amortization), ongoing repairs and other costs, and the return on investment in assets determined by the regulator.
“Klaipėdos energija” draws the attention of consumers that the end of the heating season is determined by the municipalities of Klaipėda and Gargžda, taking into account the actual outdoor air temperature. Other heat consumers, including multi-apartment residential buildings, can stop heating at their own discretion, without violating established hygiene norms. For this, you need to contact the house administrator and get the consent of the majority of the owners. If this option is not used, all consumers end the heating season according to the schedule determined by the municipality’s decision. Usually, the heating season in the port city ended at the end of April. Due to unfavorable weather last year, the heating season in Klaipėda was extended until May 3, in 2022 – until May 5.
