Companies supplying Skopje with heat have requested a significant increase in the price of central heating. Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said today that the government would try to prevent such an increase, although gas costs three times as much as it did last year.
Mickoski did not give a percentage for the possible increase in heating prices. He said that if the price changes, the increase will be minimal, not alarming, and affordable for residents.
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The prime minister said that even if prices rise, the country will continue to have by far the lowest prices in Europe for fuel, electricity and heating. He described protecting living standards as a government priority, but acknowledged that the situation with energy prices is serious and that he does not know how long it can be sustained.
According to Mickoski, the government will resist pressure to raise prices for as long as the mechanisms at its disposal continue to work.
He described the energy situation in Europe as alarming, saying prices are rising every day and have already tripled compared with the same period last year. Mickoski said the government is doing everything it can to prevent price increases in Macedonia and maintain by far the lowest prices in Europe for diesel, unleaded petrol, electricity and heating.
On electricity, Mickoski explained that the government has developed a business model with EMV aimed at avoiding a request for a price increase. However, he said it must first be tested to see whether it will work.
EMV will offer the same price as last year in EVN Home’s public call, without requesting an increase, the prime minister said. He clarified that he could not say the same for private companies, which follow independent policies. Under the proposed model, the aim is to achieve by the end of 2027 the profit that EMV would have made, though it remains to be seen whether this solution will work.
