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Saturday 14 January 2023 7:45 am  |  Updated:  Monday 16 January 2023 8:00 am

Revealed: Brits are paying the highest electricity bills in the entire world

By: Michiel Willems

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New research reveals that the UK has the highest electricity bills. Brits pay more for their power than anywhere else on the planet.

A new study looked at Government data on electricity and gas prices from the past five years to analyse the impact of the worsening cost of living crisis and discover which countries have had the biggest year-on-year increase in energy prices. The data, compiled by BOXT, was shared with Morning Wire today

The UK’s energy price cap was raised in 2022 from 28p to 34p per kWh.

Much like the rest of the world, prices have increased due to reduced supply from Russia due to the Ukraine conflict, as well as the after-effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Ireland

The UK’s neighbours in the Republic of Ireland have the second highest electricity cost, paying 18.99p per kWh. That’s 53 per cent more expensive than the average of these 24 countries.

However, prices are slightly more affordable when it comes to gas in Ireland, which stands at 5.21p per kWh.

The countries with the highest electricity prices 

RankCountryPrice – pence per kWh
1United Kingdom19.31
2Ireland18.99
3Spain18.51
3Belgium16.34
3Japan15.64
6Australia14.01
7Switzerland14.00
8Netherlands13.98
9Germany13.58
10Czech Republic12.69

Residents of Spain are paying an average of 18.51p per kWh. Electricity prices in Spain recently hit a historical high and were recently capped at €130 (£112) per megawatt hour, down from €210 (£181).

Norway is the country with by far the biggest increase in electricity prices worldwide – 91 per cent increase in electricity cost in pence/kWh since 2016. 

Top 10 countries with the biggest electricity bill price increase:

RankCountry5 year difference
1Norway91 per cent
2Finland37 per cent
3United Kingdom35 per cent
3Czech Republic35 per cent
3Denmark35 per cent
6Greece31 per cent
7Netherlands29 per cent
8France28 per cent
9Poland23 per cent
10Ireland20 per cent

The second highest electricity rises are in Finland – Since 2016, Finnish residents have seen their electricity bills increase by almost two-fifths (37%) on average.

Tied in third place are the Czech Republic, Denmark, and the United Kingdom, with a 35% increase in electricity prices. 

Read more

Britain faces energy squeeze from solar eclipse

Rows of blue solar panels in a field, generating clean energy, with green trees in the background.

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