The rise in the world market price of oil that started in 2016 continued in 2018. This was also reflected in the consumer prices of liquid fuels. In 2018, the price of light fuel oil was, on average, 14 per cent up year-on-year. The corresponding price rise for motor gasoline was three per cent and for diesel oil eight per cent, according to Statistics Finland.
The tax-free price of hard coal remained, on average, on level with the previous year in 2018. In the last quarter of the year, the tax-free price of hard coal was five per cent higher than in the previous year.
The tax-free price of natural gas continued growing in 2018. In December, the tax-free price of natural gas was 12 per cent higher than the previous year. The price of natural gas has been rising evenly since 2016.
Source: Statistics Finland
The taxation on coal and natural gas was tightened at the beginning of the year. The taxable price of coal was six per cent higher in December compared to one year earlier. The corresponding rise in the price of natural gas considering the tax increase was 12 per cent.
Of domestic fuels, the taxable price of milled peat increased by 1.5 per cent in the last quarter and the price of forest chippings fell by two per cent from the respective period of the previous year. In Finland, the fuels for electricity production are tax-free while excise duty is paid on fuels used in heat production.
Electricity
The system price of the Nordic electricity exchange derived from the sell and buy bids on the exchange went up clearly in 2018. The price went up due to a rise in the exchange price of emission rights and the worsened water situation in the Nordic countries.
In 2018, the system price of the electricity exchange was, on average, 49 per cent higher than in the previous year. The corresponding rise for the Finnish area price was 41 per cent. In December, the exchange price was 67 per cent higher on the system level and 64 per cent higher in the Finnish area than in the previous year.
In 2018, electricity prices for household customers were, on average, four per cent higher than in the year before, depending on the consumption category. For enterprise customers, the corresponding price rise was two per cent at its lowest and nine per cent at its highest.
Household customers’ electricity prices are based on the obligation to deliver prices published by the Energy Authority, while the prices of enterprise and corporate customers are based on Statistics Finland's price inquiry on electrical energy. The obligation to deliver price reacts slowly to changes in electricity prices on the Nordic electricity exchange.
