ATHENS – “The Regulatory Energy Authority is not a single-person authority. All its members have a deep knowledge of how the energy market works and on the basis of a well-established method they reach specific conclusions in their report. What do their findings say? That there is an amount which is of the order of 590 million euros which arises after deducting the discounts that can be identified as excess revenue. Some more revenue should be deducted from this amount, which concerns the benefits of energy producers with fixed tariffs to their customers, on which the government will impose an extraordinary fee of 90 pct, as the prime minister has said,” government spokesperson Yiannis Oikonomou said on Thursday in an interview with ANT1, adding that it is the largest percentage in Europe.

He noted that the resulting amount will financially support the measures announced to strengthen citizens in the face of energy price increases.

“The claims made to justify the irresponsible and unsubstantiated allegations made by the main opposition over the previous period for [excess earnings of] 1.4 billion, 1.5 billion, or 1.8 billion euros seek to undermine the credibility of not just one person, but the entire Independent Authority,” he said.

Referring to the price increases in the market, Oikonomou underlined the initiatives of the government, saying “in the face of all this, in a prudent way, with constant support, we are on the side of society. We must not forget the 200 euros given to our vulnerable fellow citizens in the past. We must not forget the increase in the minimum wage, which means an extra wage for people who are paid the minimum wage. We must not forget that the property tax (ENFIA) is reduced for eight out of ten of our fellow citizens. This is a substantial increase in income for Greek citizens. It is another link in the effort to shield them against the price increases that, indeed, make life difficult for all of us.”