Flat rate contracts mean some stay cool while everyone else pays the price
The European Commission is reluctant to take a stance on air conditioning even as outdated electricity contracts drive wholesale prices sky-high and the death toll from Europe’s June heatwave climbs.
The World Health Organisation estimates that the extreme temperatures, breaking records across Europe, have caused more than 1,000 deaths to date. But as air conditioning units fly off the shelves, they lay bare a fundamental flaw in the way electricity is consumed in the EU.
Europeans suffering from the heat are embracing air conditioning, a transformative technology – Brussels wants little to do with it, for now. “These are issues where the Commission is not micromanaging,” a spokesperson said on Monday.
The EU executive was “not really pro or contra”, the official added.
