Prices of electricity and natural gas

What does the survey comprise?

Purpose

The survey Prices of natural gas and electricity aims to reflect the average prices paid by end users for natural gas and electricity. The total price is comprised of energy supply prices and network prices.

Target population

End users of natural gas and electricity. These are household and final non-household customers buying natural gas for their own use that is distributed through mains.

Statistical unit

the national average prices charged to household and final non-household customers.
Date/year survey startedPrices of natural gas and electricity are available from the first semester of 2009.

Frequency

Bi-annual

Publication strategy

The figures are provisional at first publication.

How is the survey conducted?

Survey type

The prices are the average of all surveyed energy companies, divided over consumption bands. These energy companies submit the energy consumption and costs attached to them for all their clients, covering a representative share of the national market.

Survey method

For the compilation of data, statistical surveys are conducted at energy companies. Energy supply companies and regional network companies are approached.
Network prices for households are derived from administrative sources. Open data and tariffs are published on the websites of the regional network companies, providing the necessary data to compile the prices.

Respondents

Energy companies

Sample size

The panel consists of many of the large energy companies operating in the Netherlands, making sure at least 70 percent of the market is covered.

Checking and correction methods

The data is validated by using the build-in validation tools of the questionnaires that are disseminated as well as several additional checks on data provided to Statistics Netherlands.
An imputation method is developed whereby a consumption band with no response can still provide a price. For this, the last known price for the same period of the previous year is updated using the year-to-year trend in prices from the left nearest category.

Weighting

The weighting is based on the reported consumption volumes.

Sequential comparability

The reported prices for the various consumption bands are average prices within these bandwidths. The price changes between periods therefore allow for an indication of the price development over time, but the price difference is not purely the result of prices, but also of changes in consumption volumes. When volumes are higher than a year before and total costs remain the same, this will result in lower prices.