Between January and June, the EU average cost of electricity was EUR21,9 per 100 kW hours this year. That's 60 eurocents more than a year before, writes MTI, based on Eurostat. The price of natural gas has decreased slightly, to EUR6,4 per 100 kW hours on average in the EU, 10 cents less than in the first half of 2020.

Households paid nearly 37% more for electricity than in 2008, and gas cost about 10% more in the first half of this year. Taxes and levies accounted for more than a third of the charges billed to the population: 39% of the amount payable for electricity and 36% for natural gas. Wholesale prices for electricity and gas have risen sharply in recent months.

Expressed in euros, the average residential electricity price in Hungary (where about half of the electricity generated originated from the Paks Nuclear Power Plant) was the lowest in the first half of this year: EUR10 per 100 kW hours. It is followed by Bulgaria with EUR10,2 and Malta with EUR12,8. The most, EUR31,9 had to be paid in Germany, followed by Denmark with EUR29, Belgium with EUR27 and Ireland with EUR25,6. In the national currencies of each country, electricity prices rose the most in Slovenia (15%), Poland (8%) and Romania (7%).

Natural gas was the cheapest in Lithuania, while Latvia is at second place, and Hungary is the third. Dutch households paid the most, then Denmark and Portugal – can be read from the summary of MTI.