The Sejm, the lower house of the Polish parliament, has adopted a bill freezing natural gas tariffs in 2023 for all households and sensitive recipients at 2022 levels.
The bill went through on December 1 night with 424 votes in favour and 16 abstentions, with no votes against.
Under the draft legislation, the gas price will be capped at PLN 200.17 (EUR 42.7) per megawatt hour (MWh) and distribution fees will be frozen.
The gas tariffs will be frozen for all, regardless of the income threshold, including households and various sensitive recipients, such as schools, pre-schools, or health and social care facilities.
Additionally, based on an income criterion, select households will be able to apply for a return of VAT on gas fuel that Poland is required to reinstate by the European Commission as of 2023. The income criterion was set at PLN 2,100 (EUR 448) per person monthly in the case of single-person households and PLN 1,500 (EUR 320) per person in the case of bigger households.
The bill also offers compensations to companies providing gas.
Now the draft legislation goes to the Senate, the upper house of parliament. (The First News/Business World Magazine)
