The General Directorate of Energy of the Generalitat has fined 600,000 euros to EDistribution Digital Networksof the Endesa group, for the delays in the issuance of invoices to its clients, as confirmed by sources from the Ministry of Climate Action, Food and Rural Agenda to Europa Press this Monday. Endesa has stated that it will study whether plead the fine for delays that the electricity company has recognized and for which it has apologized.
The sanctioning file is the consequence of a informative file which confirms that the default of the distributor has initially affected more than two million users, about 50% of the supplies that the company has in Catalonia. The company defends that as of November 22, the list of affected clients had been reduced to 38,000 -approximately 1% of the total- and has assured that it is working “with the commitment to have it resolved by the end of March” 2022.
Endesa fixes the origin of the problem on June 1, 2021, when there was a change in the fee structure “which has meant a profound change”, and which coincided with the implementation of a new billing system. The novelties that have implied the modifications in the content and structure of the invoice, those of the VAT and the electricity tax or the social bonus approved during the last two months, have caused an “impact on the computer systems of the distributor”.
According to the file, Endesa would have “put at risk the stability of the electric system“, since it would have jeopardized the economic viability of the electrical marketerswho would not have been able to issue invoices while continuing to pay their fixed costs. In addition, it would have posed a risk to users due to the accumulation of receipts, for which the Generalitat has ruled that Endesa must apportion invoices accumulated in subsequent receipts and during the same time to avoid defaults and the consequent possible service cuts.
The company has defended that it has informed the Generalitat “on time” of both the impact and the reasons for the delay, and that they have communicated the situation to both customers and marketers, to whom, in addition, it has offered solutions.
Small marketers
The General Director of Energy, Assumpta Farran, has maintained that the Government believes “firmly and decisively in the democratization of energy”. “With practices such as the one we sanction, what can occur is an even greater concentration of power in a few companies,” Farran warned. He has warned that the lack of billing is “stressing” the small marketers that after 20 years have managed to carve out a space in the market. In addition, he has warned that this tension comes at a very difficult time market prices and that puts them in serious treasury problems.
Related news
The normative establishes that the invoice must be issued within a maximum period of five days from the meter reading date. The Generalitat notes that from the documentation an alleged breach of the obligations and functions of the distributorconsisting of not having billed the tolls and not having made the necessary readings available to marketers. He has warned that for the marketers the lack of issuance of consumption invoices by the distributor causes them tensions of treasurywhile for users it translates into the accumulation of receipts.
EDistribution Digital Networks is the distribution company that owns 98% of the network and is responsible for reading 96% of the counted in Catalonia.