Tenants who pay towards communal energy costs, or who have district heating in their accommodation, pay for this via our service costs. At the end of each year, you receive a final bill to balance the actual amount. Sometimes this means topping up with an extra payment. Sometimes you get money back. The less energy the building uses, the lower your final bill.
We purchase the energy for all our residential buildings in bulk and then spread the costs to tenants over the year. Buying energy this way gives us more certainty about the price over a prolonged period of time. (A strategy agreed through discussions with tenants’ representation.) The price we pay is made up of the energy tariff (cost per unit) + standing charges and surcharges. Although buying our energy like this gives us control over the tariff, we have no control over fluctuations in the standing charge and surcharges.
We have already fixed our energy tariff for 2022, but we cannot control the standing charges and surcharges. That is why we cannot yet say how much you will need to pay in 2022.
It takes a collective effort to get energy use as low as possible. Using less energy results in lower bills and less harm to the environment. Getting all your housemates and fellow residents on board gives you the best chance of a good result. Want some inspiration? Check out the energy race that three of our residential buildings participated in in 2018.
Here are some general tips for saving energy:
Do you have any of your own tips to share, or questions to ask? Don’t hesitate to email us at info@stadswonenrotterdam.nl so we can talk about them.