Poland said "no" to Brussels' tax idea for cheaper electricity

Warsaw believes that taxes should be decided by member states, as before, and changes in this area should be adopted unanimously.

Such provisions should not be included in this law, said Deputy Minister of Energy Wojciech Wrochna directly. The principle of unanimity applies in tax matters - he argued - therefore this provision has no basis to be included in this regulation.

The point is that the EU Treaties ensure the principle of unanimity in tax matters. Therefore, Poland believes that no obligation should be introduced regarding the relationship between electricity and gas taxation under the legislation proposed by the EC.

The dispute concerns Article 18c of the draft regulation. Apart from Poland, similar reservations were raised today by a large group of countries, including Sweden, Italy, Finland and Bulgaria.

The European Commission wants countries to set excise taxes so that electricity is not taxed higher than natural gas. The RMF FM journalist heard at the European Commission that in Poland taxes and fees constitute 36%. electricity prices for Polish enterprises. This is the highest share in the EU ranking. Adopting the EC's proposal would therefore mean the need to change the current rules on excise duty on electricity and gas.

Brussels proves that it does not propose a single tax rate for all countries, but wants to introduce a common principle regarding the relationship between electricity and gas taxation. The idea is that the new taxation rules will encourage households and companies to invest in heat pumps and electrical solutions in industry.

Deputy Minister Wrochna also emphasized that the regulation itself does not solve the problem of expensive bills. Poland demands a broader discussion about the causes of high energy prices, including the costs of CO₂ emissions and the EU Emissions Trading System, i.e. ETS.

The opposition of many countries may lead to the removal of the controversial provision from the next compromise of the Irish presidency. The new text is to be discussed on November 10.