Portugal pays less for electricity than the EU but more for household gas

Electricity below the EU average

ERSE bulletins, which draw on Eurostat data supplemented with information from energy suppliers, put the average household electricity price in Portugal at 0.2491 euros per kWh in the first half of 2026. That sits below Spain's 0.2620 euros and the EU's 0.2882 euros. Compared with the same period of 2025, Portuguese household electricity fell 1.8%. Non-household customers also paid less than the EU and euro-area averages, with electricity down 6.3% year on year. Taxes and levies, including the costs of general economic interest, made up 33% of the final price in Portugal's most representative household profile, against 28% in the EU and the euro area.

Portugal0.249

Spain0.262

EU0.288

Portugal

0.2491 €/kWh

Spain

0.262 €/kWh

EU

0.2882 €/kWh

Data from the article text

Household gas costs more than in the EU

According to the same ERSE data, households in Portugal paid an average of 0.1471 euros per kWh for natural gas, above the EU average of 0.1378 euros and Spain's 0.0867 euros. That was a slight rise of 0.2% on the first half of 2025. Taxes account for 31% of the Portuguese household gas price, compared with 19% in Spain, 27% in the EU and 28% in the euro area. Non-household gas prices were also below the EU and euro-area averages, falling 10% year on year. Eurostat's figures for the same half-year, however, put the Portuguese household gas price at 0.13 euros per kWh and the EU average at 0.11 euros, so the two data sets give different levels.

Gas prices across the EU

Eurostat says the average EU household gas price was 0.11 euros per kWh in the first half of 2026, down 10.2% from the second half of 2025 and 3.5% from the first half of 2025. That is the lowest average since the first half of 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine. Sweden had the highest nominal price at 0.22 euros per kWh, followed by the Netherlands at 0.16, while Portugal and France each stood at 0.13. Adjusted for purchasing power, Portugal ranked second highest in the EU at 15.0 per 100 kWh, behind Sweden's 17.7 and ahead of the Netherlands' 13.8. The cheapest were Hungary at 0.03 euros, Croatia at 0.05, and Romania and Slovakia at 0.06 each. Against the first half of 2025, gas prices fell in 12 EU countries with data, rose in seven and were broadly stable in four. The steepest declines were in Bulgaria (-14.5%), Greece (-11.3%) and Spain (-10.0%), while Romania (+9.3%), Croatia (+8.9%) and Slovakia (+6.6%) recorded the largest increases.

Sweden0.22

Netherlands0.16

France0.13

Portugal0.13

Croatia0.05

Hungary0.03

Sweden

0.22 €/kWh

Netherlands

0.16 €/kWh

France

0.13 €/kWh

Portugal

0.13 €/kWh

Croatia

0.05 €/kWh

Hungary

0.03 €/kWh

Data from the article text

Electricity still above pre-crisis levels

Eurostat also reported that EU household electricity prices fell year on year in the first half of 2026 but remain well above the levels seen before the 2022 energy crisis. Electricity prices rose most in Romania (51.6%), Ireland (19.8%) and Finland (18.4%). Denmark (-31.7%) and Luxembourg (-24.1%) recorded the largest declines. All these comparisons are made against the first half of 2025.

Gas consumption falls in Portugal

DGEG data show Portugal's gas consumption fell 7.1% between April and September 2026 compared with the same months of 2025. The main driver was lower use of natural gas in electricity generation, where gas-fired power plants cut consumption by 15.6%. The conventional market, covering other uses, fell by a milder 2.7%. Against the April-September average for 2017 to 2021, total gas consumption sits 41.4% lower and consumption in the electricity sector is down 55.5%. Underground storage at Carriço was 94% full on 1 October, above the European target, while the Sines LNG terminal stood at 46%.

Total gas consumption-7.1%

Gas-fired power plants-15.6%

Conventional market-2.7%

Total gas consumption

-7.1 %

Gas-fired power plants

-15.6 %

Conventional market

-2.7 %

Data from the article text

What the agency stresses

The DGEG notes that gas use in power stations is shaped by weather conditions and the availability of renewable energy, which explains the larger swings compared with the conventional market. The agency stresses the need to keep tracking consumption trends given current international uncertainty. It points in particular to the geopolitical impact in the Middle East and the possible closure of the Strait of Hormuz.