Windfall tax

The government appears determined to reimpose a windfall tax on what it considers excessive profits in the wholesale electricity market, where prices have been rising again, even without the approval of the European Union.

As before, the tax will be used to subsidize households' and businesses' electricity bills.

It is highly likely that the government will need to continue subsidizing electricity bills in September as natural gas prices rose toward the end of August, Environment and Energy Minister Theodoros Skylakakis said in a radio interview Friday.

Greece's two oil refineries, HELLENiQ Energy and Motor Oil paid a first installment of a one-off windfall tax on their 2022 profits in July, officials have told Kathimerini. 

The windfall tax was imposed by the European Commission for all bloc members and it adds up to 33% on those 2022 profits that exceed the refiners' 2018-2021 average by 20%.