Most expensive electricity in the world
Households in Italy, the United Kingdom, and Germany have some of the most expensive electricity prices in the world.The economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 and the gas supply crunch after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 caused wholesale electricity prices in Europe to shoot up. The vulnerability of the region to global market fluctuations lies in the dependence of its electricity sector on gas imports, which supply bottlenecks reflected on electricity prices. Unfavorable weather for hydropower and wind energy generation, and nuclear power outages in France also contributed to the price increase.
Least expensive electricity in the world
Large producers and exporters of natural gas and petroleum, such as the United States, Russia, China, and the Middle Eastern countries of Qatar and Iran, enjoy some of the least expensive electricity prices in the world.However, the 2022 fossil fuel crunch in Europe affected the global supply chain of gas and coal and drove benchmark electricity prices up, affecting the big fossil fuel producers. Retail electricity prices in the U.S. were the highest on record in 2022 and 2023, and consumers in China and Russia also experienced a growth in power prices in 2021 and 2022.
