Some people in Potsdam can look forward to cheaper electricity prices than in the rest of the country – but only if they are church members. Now criticism is loud.
Many people in Germany fear the next electricity bill. Energy prices have risen so sharply in recent months that quite a few people said in surveys that they would rather put money aside for the next service charge bill than go on vacation. The demand for offers and discounts is logically high, but these are also few and far between. In Potsdam, however, consumers can count on relatively cheap electricity. The catch: the customers have to be members of the church.
Potsdam: Stadtwerke gives a discount on the electricity price – but only for church members
This curiosity is made possible by the “EchtKircheÖko” tariff. People in Potsdam and the surrounding area can obtain electricity from the municipal utility that is up to 14 cents per kilowatt hour cheaper than the regular tariff. This is reported, among other things, by “T-Online”.
The reason for the discount for believers goes back several years. Church members in Potsdam have been able to obtain electricity from their parish since 2004. As “Bild” reports, the original idea was to fulfill the community members’ desire for electricity that was as ecological as possible. Therefore, the municipalities entered into negotiations with the Potsdam municipal utility. The result was a tariff that supplied customers with 100 percent green electricity. Financially, joining the church has not been worthwhile in recent years just because of the electricity tariff. However, this has changed since energy prices have risen so much.
Two-class society also within the church
Customers who live in Berlin, get their electricity from Stadtwerke Potsdam and are members of the Catholic Church currently pay 25.28 cents per kilowatt hour in the “EchtKircheÖko” tariff. Curiously enough, Protestants have to dig deeper into their pockets. They charge a price of 29.71 cents per kilowatt hour. A two-class society also seems to exist within the church stream. But this still pays significantly less than a regular new customer who is not in a church community. A price of 39.76 cents is called for them – almost 14 cents more than for Catholics.
At first glance, that doesn’t seem like a lot of money, but projected over a year, it adds up to a lot, as “Focus” calculates: With a consumption of 2500 kilowatt hours per year, a church member pays 847.79 euros. Those who do not belong to the Catholic Church pay 1077.04 euros per year for the same consumption.
Criticism from the supervisory board of Stadtwerke Potsdam
In both cases it is 100 percent green electricity. The difference is that the parishes in Potsdam signed long-term contracts with Stadtwerke Potsdam at an early stage. These contracts and the significantly lower pre-crisis prices continue to exist and can still be concluded as a new customer. However, it is not known how long this will be possible.
Left-wing politician Stefan Wollenberg, himself on the supervisory board of Potsdamer Stadtwerke, criticizes the benefits for church members. “There shouldn’t be a preference for religious beliefs in electricity and gas prices,” he told the “Bild”.
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Source: Stern
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
