On Thursday, electricity prices are at a record high – and on Friday they are expected to rise even more. But how much you have to fork out is determined by the power region you live in. Price areas In Norway, the grid is divided into five price areas: South-East Norway (NO1) South-West Norway (NO2) Central Norway (NO3) Northern Norway (NO4) Western Norway (NO5) Only in Vestland, which consists of three different current areas , the prices now vary from 596 øre per kilowatt in Sunnhordland, to 277 from Sognefjorden to Bjørnafjorden, while the rest of the county got away with 3 øre per kilowatt. In Høyanger municipality in Sogn, the border between two such power regions runs in the middle of the nearly eight kilometer long Høyanger tunnel. Big differences – It’s really illogical and very unfair, says mother of four Anne Jo Bjordal, who is among the unlucky ones. The family in Lånefjorden these days pays NOK 2 and 9 øre per kilowatt hour. But north of the Sognefjord, which belongs to the Midt-Norway region, the price is 2 øre per kilowatt hour. – For me, a stream is a stream. We live in the same municipality, so it’s not fair, says Bjordal. They try to save where they can, but it’s not just easy in a large family. – Things like this cannot continue. We have to live too, she says. Half a million in electricity bill Bedrifta Nesseplast in Balestrand is also on the “wrong” side of Høyanger municipality. – It’s absolutely crazy. Quite sad, says Erling Nesse, day-to-day manager of the company, which also has a branch in Bømlo. The electricity bill is up to 500,000 each month, which is a sixfold increase from before. BIG BILLS: Erling Nesse at Nesseplast in Balestrand hopes that things will get better, because the company does not have the opportunity to save on electricity costs. Photo: Aleksander Åsnes / news – We are on the wrong side of the tunnel. There is a price on one side, and another on the other side. – What do you think about the electricity costing three cents per kilowatt-hour in other parts of the municipality? – It is very strange to think about. The competitors further north have a completely different cost structure than us. It is very stupid and means something in the long term. The company, which makes packaging, has considered moving parts of its production to a region with lower electricity prices. BKK: – Extreme differences If the power market had been optimal, there would have been free flow from producer to consumer throughout the Nordics with a common price. But that is not the case, explains Olav Osvoll in Eviny, part of the BKK group. The reason is major differences in the physical power grid. – This means that demand and supply in each area determine the price. It makes extreme differences, he says. – What can power producers do to equalize this? – We produce what we can and hold onto the water to save it for the winter, he says, and adds that the differences are a system error that must be corrected. The solution is to build more power lines to increase transport capacity between the different price ranges in Norway, he thinks.
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Anne Jo pays dearly for the electricity, while local residents almost get it for free – news Vestland
