It can sometimes be complex to understand andAnalyzing a gas bill. Indeed, some businesses sometimes find themselves in difficulty in this exercise. However, it is important to know the structure of your bills, in order to hope to be able to optimize your energy costs.

That is why, at SirEnergies, we decided to help you! Indeed, with this article we will help you better understand the different parts of a gas bill.

As with electricity, the gas bill is divided into three distinct parts: a part energy, a part subscription And finally a game taxes.

However, the gas bill has specific features that are specific to gas sector. Indeed, the elements found on your bill are completely different from those on an electricity bill. Some principles are the same, such as the fixed and variable portion of the bill. However, there are some fundamental differences that we are going to discuss in this article.

Gas is an energy that meets its own physical rules. For example, we can mention storage, which is at the heart of discussions when it comes to, for example, balancing the network. Gas is an energy that can be stored on a large scale, unlike electricity. So the storage costs are an integral part of delivery rates.

We will therefore try to decipher your gas bill, in order to help you better understand and optimize your energy costs.

Understanding the supply part of your gas bill

The supply of gas: an international activity

First, let's look at the supply part, in other words The energy part of your bill. This is what the customer pays for the gas he consumes. It is on this part that gas suppliers are in concurrency. In France, currently, there are about twenty different suppliers; each of them offers different prices, and these depend on their gas supply cost.

The gas market is in fact not a local market. The majority of French suppliers buy their gas volumes on financial markets. These volumes of gas are transported by gas pipelines or boats (LNG carriers for liquefied natural gas). Again, it is the physical nature of the gas that allows this operation to function.

This diagram illustrates well the sources and exchanges of gas volumes in France. It is this system that allows alternative suppliers to offer offers at market prices. These prices fluctuate and, depending on the timing, the price can be very different from one contract to the next.

We can thus observe the Changes in gas prices On the main stock exchanges. That is why, as a company, it is important, on the one hand, to put the different suppliers in competition, but on the other hand, to choose an appropriate time in the year to subscribe to a new gas contract.

You will find these amounts in the “Energy” category of your bill. Generally, the volume of consumption appears in kWh/MWh with a unit price in €.

There is also a consumption table associated with your bill. Note that suppliers enter the amounts in m³ of gas, then indicate the conversion made to obtain MWh.

A variety of supply offers

Today, businesses no longer have access to the regulated rate as is still the case for individuals. In the years to come, the latter will disappear in favor ofmarket offers.

In the same way as electricity offers, gas offers different options.

For example, every business can choose today to subscribe to a fixed price. That is to say, the gas price is fixed for a period of time known in advance, often one or two years. You can thus create your energy budget accurately for a specific period of time.

On the contrary, you may be interested in an offer at variable price, indexed to gas prices.

Everything depends on your energy purchase strategy, SirEnergies is there to support you in this process!

Understanding the delivery part of your gas bill

The ATRD and the ATRT

In order to fully understand your gas bill, it is important to understand the structure of delivery rates. Like the TURP In electricity, the costs related to the transport of gas are clearly displayed on your bills. This is the ATRD/T: Third-Party Access to Distribution or Transport Networks.

Indeed, there are several public service companies that transport gas to consumption sites (businesses, individuals, etc.). The most important are GRDF for the distribution network and GRTgaz and Teréga for the transport network. These costs are found in the category” Subscription ” of your bill. In general, suppliers charge fixed delivery costs in this way.

However, it is important to mention the variable part of transport and distribution rates. Indeed, the latter is called the” Quantity term ” and varies according to the customer's consumption. So it's about tariffs delivery, but this term is sometimes found in the “Energy” section of your bill. This is not an error, but rather a question of display, because this term, as we said, varies according to energy.

The geographical dimension of delivery rates

Beyond a simple breakdown between fixed and variable parts, there are several rate options to be determined for each gas supply contract (from T1 to TP):

In addition, the rates are also divided by consumption profiles. There are nine consumption profiles, ranging from P011 to P019. These profiles will vary according to your consumption during the winter. Thus, each gas consumption site in France can be categorized in this way.

The big difference with electricity tariffs lies in geographic differentiation. In fact, in electricity, no matter where you are on the network, it does not affect your price. In gas, it's completely the opposite. The farther the site is from the main transport routes, the higher the price will be.

Understanding the tax part of your gas bill

Taxes represent nearly a quarter of a gas bill. They are proportionally less important than on electricity bills. However, they are still an important part that should not be underestimated.

There are 3 different taxes:

• The Transport Tariff Contribution (CTA): as in electricity, it represents a percentage of the fixed portion of the delivery rate. Its amount depends on the supply choices of your natural gas supplier as well as your use (as explained above).
• Domestic Tax on Natural Gas Consumption (TICGN): this tax varies according to your consumption. It has represented 0.00843 €/kWh of billing since 1 January 2021 (compared to 0.00845 €/kWh in 2020).
• And finally the usual Value Added Tax (VAT): a rate of 20% is applied to the variable part (molecule, quantity term and TICGN). There is a reduced rate of 5.5% on the fixed part (subscription, storage as well as on the CTA).

We hope that by the end of this article, your gas bills seem clearer and more understandable.

Do not hesitate to consult our article on 5 tips to reduce your business natural gas bill !

We decipher your energy bills.

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