BERLIN/BONN (dpa-AFX) - In the debate about high energy prices for households, the energy industry has contradicted Federal Network Agency head Klaus Müller, who had complained about too little competition in the energy market. "It is not a lack of competition that is the reason why there have not yet been any major price reductions, but rather the current crisis situation," said Kerstin Andreae, Chairwoman of the Executive Board of the German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW), in Berlin on Wednesday.

She added that many energy utilities had managed, especially in 2022, to keep energy prices for end consumers stable or only increase them slightly, even in times of exponentially rising wholesale prices. "The reason for this was a solid procurement strategy designed for several years, which creates price security and does not have to directly reflect the strong price fluctuations on the wholesale market."

Müller had said on Monday that at the moment there was "no reasonable competition model in the electricity and gas market." He called for a discussion on "how do we ensure that we come to a reasonable competitive pressure, so that ultimately prices can also fall again at some point."

Andreae said that the basic suppliers in particular had taken over the supply of many customers in 2022, who had previously relied on short-term suppliers with cheap prices. Especially in times of considerable uncertainty and price risks, he said, reliability and a long-term approach are good choices. "This is also competition: the customer can decide how much importance he attaches to reliable supply by the respective company when choosing a supplier."/tob/DP/zb