Lattelecom enters the electricity market under the tet brand

On 9 February, at a special presentation, Lattelecom Chairman of the Board Juris Gulbis announced that the company was entering the electricity market under the new tet brand, offering Latvian households the opportunity to purchase electricity at more favourable prices than those offered by existing electricity retailers.

Applications for tet electricity can be submitted starting today on the website www.tet.lv, by calling the customer service number 177, as well as at Lattelecom shops and customer service centres. For those who apply for the service by 15 March, service provision will begin on 1 April of this year.

“tet is an ambitious, confident step aimed at the sustainable development of both the company and the country. Until now, Latvian residents have benefited from the open electricity market only ‘on paper’. We have succeeded in creating an offer that will provide 95% of households with more favourable, clearer bills and a smart service suited to the modern era and the possibilities of the Internet of Things. From today, Latvian residents and the entire open electricity market will benefit in real life as well,” J. Gulbis said at the launch ceremony of the new service. 

The new tet service will not include a subscription fee or other hidden costs, and it will not impose a penalty in the event of contract termination. The company also reveals that tet was developed thanks to the work of Lattelecom’s internal accelerator, Startt. 

Artūrs Pielēns-Pelēns, head of Lattelecom’s tet electricity service, explains that many electricity retailers in Latvia include a subscription fee in their business model. Customers are sometimes unaware of this or mistakenly believe that the subscription fee is a payment to the state or AS Sadales tīkls.  “However, it is an additional intermediary fee charged by the retailer on top of the service price already billed to the customer. We believe that applying a subscription fee does not promote a transparent and understandable final payment, because without it the electricity price appears attractive to the customer, while the bill turns out to be higher than planned.”

Lattelecom will specifically explain and encourage residents to choose a tariff plan linked to electricity prices on the exchange. Linking the electricity bill to exchange prices, together with favourable retailer service conditions, gives people the opportunity to manage and control their own bills. In addition, electricity consumption can easily be automated with the help of a smart meter, which AS Sadales tīkls installs free of charge for everyone who chooses a tariff plan linked to exchange prices.  “Unfortunately, residents have so far received very little explanation of how electricity exchange prices work: this is not only a more favourable but also a smarter way of consuming energy resources. Linking the bill to the exchange price means that, in the long term, customers will be able to save by adapting their habits to fluctuations in electricity prices on the exchange every hour, 24 hours a day. For example, it would be wiser to do the laundry or heat the water heater at night, when electricity is cheaper,” says A. Pielēns-Pelēns. 

According to a study, every third resident (33%) admits that they do not understand what is included in their electricity bill, and almost half (44%) do not know whether their bill includes the above-mentioned subscription fee charged by the electricity retailer. Consequently, in a situation where such a large proportion of Latvian electricity users do not understand how their bill is calculated, 41% of residents are also unable to say whether they are satisfied with their electricity retailer at all, answering “don’t know”, while 19% admit that they are dissatisfied.

Almost half (47%) of the Latvian residents surveyed have no idea how electricity exchange prices compare with the fixed prices offered by electricity retailers. They do not know whether the exchange prices are lower, higher or similar. 

Starting today, tet offers residents three tariff plans: 

Dynamic: for those who want to determine their bill through their electricity-use habits by keeping track of price fluctuations on the exchange and achieving greater savings. This plan has the lowest electricity charge. The bill consists of the exchange electricity price and a service fee per kWh consumed. For an average electricity consumer using 200 kW per month, the annual savings could amount to around 30 euros.

Safe: for those who want to try the Dynamic plan but are still afraid to take the risk. With a slightly higher service fee (18 euro cents more per month than for a Dynamic plan user), the customer is guaranteed not to pay more than 61.13 euros per MWh, even if exchange prices suddenly rise above this price level. 

Fixed: a fixed-price payment for those who do not want to think about their bills and are not concerned about price differences. The plan is easy to forecast and carries no risks. However, even with this plan, the annual savings for an average electricity consumer using 200 kW per month could amount to around 15 euros.

Lattelecom stresses that people wishing to switch to the tet service only need to apply to the new service provider. The company itself will arrange the switch from the previous electricity seller, contact AS Sadales tīkls if necessary so that it can install a smart meter, and help resolve other matters.

About the tet brand:

In the Lattelecom brand, “tt” represents connection: Lattelecom removes barriers between people and technology, connects people, and connects people with knowledge and the world.

tet is a new level of connection, created by people themselves. tet embodies equality between the service provider and the recipient—mutual understanding, the ability to control the situation, and mutual benefit.  With tet, customers themselves begin to create and manage their smart home, starting with electricity: they can track the exchange themselves, take advantage of opportunities, avoid risks, manage their resource consumption, and control costs using the tools we place in their hands.  

Publicity photographs from the tet presentation event: ej.uz/Lattelecom_tet