Cumulative cost of electricity system operation services in Spain reaches €3.16 billion in 2026

en.Wedoany.com Reported - The share of electricity system operation service costs in electricity bills continues to rise, having generated a cumulative additional expense of €3.16 billion for households and businesses so far in 2026, a 36% increase compared to the same period last year. The eighth report published by the Observatory for the Cost of Operation Services (Observatorio del Coste de los Servicios de Operación) shows that in the second half of July alone, these services added €220 million to electricity bills, becoming one of the main factors driving up final electricity prices.

The report notes that since the beginning of the year, the average additional cost of these services has been €22.09 per megawatt-hour, approaching the cost of the grid itself. Between July 16 and 31, the impact was €17.57 per megawatt-hour. According to the Observatory's data, one-seventh of what consumers pay in their electricity bills no longer corresponds to energy prices in the wholesale market, but rather to costs arising from system operation.

The Observatory emphasizes that this cost has shifted from being a temporary phenomenon to a structural component of electricity bills. The evolution recorded in the report shows that this increase has accelerated following recent events, particularly since the major blackout of April 28, 2025, when the so-called reinforced operation mode has been activated more frequently. The institutions promoting the Observatory consider that this exceptional mechanism significantly increases the costs borne by consumers and industrial companies.

The weight of operation service costs varies notably across different user types. Households under the PVPC (Voluntary Price for Small Consumer) scheme have seen their electricity bills increase by 6%, small and medium-sized enterprises by 9%, and large energy-intensive companies are affected by up to 15%. The report's promoters point out that, in a context of accelerating electrification, this undermines the competitiveness of Spanish industry. In the second half of July, operation services accounted for 13% of the final electricity price, while the day-ahead market portion represented 87%.

In response to this situation, the member organizations of the Observatory demand greater transparency in the mechanisms that generate these costs and stronger oversight by the National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC), particularly regarding costs associated with reinforced operation. They also recommend regularly publishing detailed information on these mechanisms and establishing a timeline for their phase-out. Furthermore, the Observatory proposes studying regulatory reforms that would allow these services to be funded through regulated costs of the electricity system, rather than passing them all onto energy prices, and suggests permanently consolidating the suspension of certain energy taxes to avoid further increases in electricity prices.

The Observatory believes that regulatory and operational decisions should align with the goals of decarbonization, industrial competitiveness, and energy autonomy, as the current increase in these costs is eroding the competitiveness of the Spanish economy.

Coinciding with the release of the report, the Spanish Confederation of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (CEPYME) announced its membership in the Observatory for the Cost of Operation Services. The business organization stated that this membership expands the initiative's representativeness by incorporating SMEs, thereby beginning to represent nearly all commercial and industrial sectors in Spain. The participating entities stressed the need for regulatory measures to curb the growth of these costs and maintain business competitiveness during the energy transition.