Moldovan energy distribution companies demand increase in electricity rate by over 50 per cent
16:49 | 31.03.2015 Category: Economic
Chisinau, 31 March /MOLDPRES/- The RED Nord and RED Nord-Vest energy distribution companies have demanded increase in electricity rate by over 50 per cent and respectively, 61 per cent, on average, the Agency for Regulation of Energy (ANRE) said at public consultations organised today.
"We request increasing the rate for end consumers from 1.62 lei per 1 KW/h up to 2.42 lei", the head of the RED Nord economic service, Anastasia Munteanu, has said. She explains the demand to adjust the rate by the "essential depreciation" of the Moldovan leu against the U.S. dollar, increase in the cost of procurements and transportation, investments and other factors.
An exchange rate of 11.83 lei per 1 U.S. dollar has been taken into account when setting the rate in May 2012. In 2015, the enterprise purchases energy from the Energocom company at 18.3 lei. The company demands increase in the rate from 1.78 lei to 2.71 lei per 1 KW/h for household consumers.
Asked which the residents' reaction to the increase in rates might be, Anastasia Munteanu said they "will be shocked." Yet, this would not have happened, if the rates were adjusted gradually. At the same time, the RED Nord company asked ANRE to adjust the costs "as soon as possible," in order to avoid accumulation of new debts. The losses of the company stand at 19 million lei each month, because of the non-adjustment of rates, Munteanu added.
RED Nord-Vest demands increase in the rates, on average, from 1.68 lei for one KW/hour to 2.71 lei, and the rate for the household consumers from 1.73 to 2.99 lei per one KW/hour, the company’s technical director, Daniel Chivriga, said. In the context, he referred to the Moldovan leu’s depreciation, a 57.7-per cent rise in costs of purchasing power from Energocom against the situation recorded three years ago, when the last adjusting of the rate was made, other expenses.
The RED Nord state enterprise provides over 295,000 consumers with electric energy, of whom 286,800 are household consumers, and RED Nor-Vest has more than 180,0000 clients, of which about 10,000 enterprises.
The public debates lasted less than an hour. The questions regarded basically technical and economic details.
The National Agency for Regulation of Energy said it would consider applications by operators on approving the new rates for electricity and gas at a public meeting on 10 April.
(Reporter V. Berco, editor M. Jantovan)
