The price of electricity, between stability and uncertainty

Barbara Antonioli Mantegazzini, Professor at the Faculty of Economics and Vice-Director of the Institute of Economic Research (IRE), spoke about the evolution of energy prices, a very topical issue that has concerned many of us during recent months; she shed light on the subject during the SEIDISERA programme, which aired on Rete Uno (RSI), and tried to provide an outline of the future.

Antonioli Mantegazzini explained how the price of energy, which was previously notable for its degree of stability, has fluctuated considerably in recent years, mainly due to the events that have rocked Europe since 2020 (COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine in particular). As Professor Antonioli Mantegazzini explained, on average 50% of the price of electricity in Switzerland is accounted for by the cost of energy, and the latter has fluctuated considerably, for economic, geopolitical and also ecological reasons. The deputy director of IRE also explained the possible effects of the increased expansion of renewable energy sources: while wholesale prices will tend to decrease, they will experience greater volatility, as renewables are not continuous. Therefore, it is important to invest in storage. Finally, she pointed out the potential of electricity self-production: ‘As soon as you succeed in enhancing the role of self-production for self-consumption, i.e. not so much the feeding into the grid (the sale of the surplus generated) but as self-consumption, then you are going in the right direction in my opinion, because you alleviate the stress on the grid and reduce your spending, because self-consumption is considerably cheaper than buying from the distributor.

You can listen to Professor Antonioli Mantegazzini's contribution at the following link.