Croatia to Cut Household Gas Prices by 18% from April
Croatia has reduced annual natural gas prices for households by an average 18 percent from April due to a fall in wholesale prices on the European market, it said on Wednesday.
The reduction, already cleared by the country's energy regulator, also means Croatian oil and gas group INA is required to lower the prices of gas it produces locally and then sells to power board HEP. The government has also set the price at which HEP must sell gas to household suppliers.
"Depending on distribution cost, the households can expect their bills to go down by an average 18 percent," Economy Minister Tomislav Panenic said in a statement.
Croatia currently covers about 65 percent of its annual gas consumption of 3 billion cubic metres from its own offshore fields. The newest European Union member hopes to be able to meet its entire domestic demand helped by new exploration efforts.
INA's biggest shareholder is Hungarian energy group MOL which owns close to 50 percent. The Croatian government controls almost 45 percent.
(Reporting by Maja Zuvela)
