[WATCH] Prime Minister pledges to keep energy prices stable when gas hedging ends

Prime Minister Robert Abela reiterated his pledge that energy prices will remain stable, when the Electrogas gas hedging agreement comes to an end in April.

"We gave a clear guarantee in March 2020 that prices would remain stable and I will keep on pledging it now and in future. The prices of electricity, petrol, diesel and LPG will remain stable - meaning they will not rise," Abela said on Friday.

Asked whether there would be a new hedging agreement, Abela was evasive and insisted prices would remain stable.

Malta has a fixed-price agreement with power station and LNG terminal operator Electrogas, whose partners include the Azerbaijani state-owned SOCAR Trading.

The deal was criticised politically at a time when gas prices were lower, but Malta has always hedged on large consignments of fuel for its energy needs. The agreement with Electrogas stipulates that after April, the price of gas will be indexed for five years.

The expiry of the fixed price agreement comes at a time when the international price of oil and gas have spiked due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.