What is the capacity tariff?

The capacity tariff is part of the grid tariffs and applies only in Flanders. It takes into account not only how much electricity you consume from the grid, but also how much you consume at any one time. Electricity that you feed into the grid – for example, from solar panels – does not affect the calculation of the capacity tariff.

Do you have a digital meter? If so, the capacity charge is calculated in four steps.

Step 1: Your quarter-hourly peak

Your digital meter calculates the average power drawn (in kW) for each quarter hour. If you use many appliances at the same time, such as a charging point, oven and tumble dryer, your quarter-hourly peak will be higher.

Step 2: Your monthly peak

Of all the quarter-hourly peaks in a month, only the highest one counts. That is your monthly peak.

Good to know: Fluvius always uses a minimum monthly peak of 2.5 kW in its calculations. If your peak is lower than this, 2.5 kW will still be used for the calculation.

Step 3: Your average monthly peak

For an annual bill, Fluvius takes the average of your 12 monthly peaks. This means that a single exceptionally high peak has less impact on your capacity charge.

Step 4: Calculating your capacity charge

Your average monthly peak is multiplied by your network operator’s capacity charge. This charge varies depending on the distribution network area in which you live.

Practical tips for reducing your capacity charge

Try to avoid running several high-power appliances at the same time, for example:

• charging point + oven + tumble dryer;
• heat pump + induction hob + dishwasher.

By spreading these appliances out, your highest 15-minute peak will remain lower. This will also help reduce your capacity tariff.

Good to know: a brief peak lasting just a few seconds is usually not a problem. This is because Fluvius looks at the average power consumption over a quarter of an hour, not at a peak lasting just a few seconds. As a result, a high-power appliance can still have little impact if it is only switched on for a short time.

A practical example

Suppose your monthly peaks look like this:

The average of these 12 monthly peaks is 4.03 kW.

Suppose your network operator’s capacity charge is €55 per kW per year (a fictitious amount for illustrative purposes). In that case, you would pay:

4.03 kW × €55 = €221.65 per year