In a letter sent Friday to the Prime Minister, theall of the associations of local elected officials believe that the measures already in place will not be enough to absorb “the next increases in energy costs”
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All the associations of local elected officials, such as the Association of Mayors of France and the Association of Rural Mayors of France, are sounding the alarm in the face of rising energy prices. In a letter sent Friday, September 30 to Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, and which franceinfo was able to consult, their representatives evoke “an exceptional situation”.
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While the government must unveil its energy sobriety plan Thursday, October 6, they specify that they did not wait to try to reduce their bills: “Many local authorities have already decided on sobriety plans which include measures such as reducing heating temperatures, hourly or geographic reduction of public lighting, or limiting the time slots for ‘opening of buildings’, write the elect. According to this text, the measures already in place will not be enough to absorb “the next increases in energy charges”endangering the closure of the 2023 budgets and “continuity of public service”.
In this letter, the associations of elected officials demand the establishment of an energy shield “by capping the electricity purchase price of local authorities at a level to be defined”. A measure which would be limited in its duration, valid for the time of the crisis. Matignon is also asked for more flexibility in the choice of suppliers, but also to be able to cancel certain too expensive contracts signed “at very unfavorable pricing conditions”and power “exit without penalties to benefit from better rates once they return to a sustainable level”.
“Facing the emergency”local elected officials also demand from the government “to speed up the work” linked to the energy transition. The solution, according to them, would be to further contribute to the green fund “in a multi-annual perspective, in order to respond to this major challenge”. “The State must be up to the challenges”they conclude.