The major electricity companies and heavy industry have created the Observatory of the Cost of Operation Services to monitor the increase in electricity system expenses after the blackout. They directly point to Red Eléctrica de España (REE) for the real-time adjustments aimed at balancing supply and demand, which have made the electricity bill more expensive even though the wholesale price remains low. Their first report reveals that these costs amount to 1.800 billion euros so far this year, with 320 million euros in the first three weeks of April alone.
The hidden cost of technical grid adjustments 💡
Operation services are technical mechanisms that REE activates to correct deviations between electricity generation and consumption in real time. These include frequency regulation, management of technical constraints, and power reserves. According to the Observatory, the increase in these costs is due to a greater need to balance a grid with more intermittent renewables and less storage capacity. The system, designed to ensure stability, has become a resource sink that ultimately directly impacts the end consumer's pocket.
REE and the art of making money from imbalances 💸
It turns out that keeping the lights on is more expensive than an investment fund in tax havens. REE, with its magical touch of adjustments, has managed to make us pay 1.800 billion for a service that, in theory, should be invisible. At this rate, we'll soon see TV ads: Tired of your bill going up? Get the premium imbalance pack. Meanwhile, the wholesale price remains as flat as a saltless tortilla, but the bill inflates like a balloon at a birthday party.