Denmark tops EU for energy fees

VAT and taxes account for 68 percent of the energy bill

When it comes to its citizens paying high fees for their energy consumption, no nation in the EU can compete with Denmark.

Upwards of 70 percent of the energy bill in Denmark consists of taxes and fees, which tops the EU and is a massive problem for the country’s ambitious green transition aim.

“We aren’t electrifying our consumption in the areas we should, and we are hanging on to fossil fuels in the transportation sector and for our heating needs for far too long,” Lars Aagaard, the head of energy advocate organisation Dansk Energi, told Metroxpress newspaper.

“And we are not getting the full potential out of our fantastic ability to produce sustainable energy for our electricity grid. That’s bad for our green transition and it also makes us poorer.”

READ MORE: Wind energy in Denmark breaking world records

Lacking green incentive 
The issue surfaced after Eurelectric, the union for Europe’s energy industry, produced a report that showed that the actual energy price in Denmark only accounted for 32 percent of the final energy bill received by customers in 2015.

The report (here in English) showed that VAT and an energy tax accounted for 59 percent of the bill, while the remaining 9 percent made up the PSO tax, which goes to supporting sustainable energy.

Aagaard contended that Danes who have electric heating pumps in their homes are taxed six times as much for their energy compared to Danes who use oil burners.

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