Moldovan electricity supply enterprise demands increase in electric energy tariffs by 12.7 per cent

Chisinau, 9 March /MOLDPRES/ - The enterprise Gas Natural Fenosa Furnizare Energie (Gas Natural Fenosa Energy Supply) demands increase in the tariffs for electric energy to end consumers by 12.7 per cent starting from 1 April 2017. The company unveiled the demand on increase at public hearings organized by the National Energy Regulatory Agency (ANRE) today.   

The enterprise submitted to ANRE an application on adjusting the tariffs to costs in late November 2016, when the electricity provider demanded a 10.5-per cent rise. The enterprise reasoned its demand by the fact the a part of the earlier accumulated deviations were not taken into account when setting the tariff in July 2015, and also the ones accumulated in 2016, the 4.4-per cent inflation rate, as well as the increase in the basic costs.    

The postponing of the adjusting led to the accumulation of new financial deviations and additional expenses; as a result, the company revised its demand of growth to 12.7 per cent, a representative of Gas Natural Fenosa Furnizare Energie, Sergiu Codreanu, said.  

Under the draft presented by the supplier, a 17.7-per cent increase in the tariff for the residents is demanded, from 1.92 lei to 2.26 lei for one KW/hour (without including the value added tax VAT).

The ANRE representatives said that the institution would announce its stance at a subsequent meeting and only the justified expenditures would be taken into account when setting the tariffs. The energy regulator has earlier said that “it would not allow an unjustified increase in tariffs for the services of distribution and supply of electric energy, demanded by the state capital enterprise RED Union Fenosa.”    

The administrative board of the National Energy Regulatory Agency, after discussions in public meeting, on 12 March 2016 decided on an 11-per cent cut in the tariff for electric energy provided to residents by Gas Natural Fenosa Furnizare Energie. The regulatory authority returned to the adjusting of the tariffs, after in July 2015, it had increased the electricity tariffs by 30.37 per cent – rates which entered into forces after an audit made at the supplying companies, on 9 November.    

When adopting the decision on reducing the tariffs in March 2016, ANRE took into account the financial deviations formed as a result of the depreciation of the national currency. Subsequently, the Economics Ministry and the Gas Natural Fenosa Group signed an arrangement, according to which the recovery of the tariff deviations by Gas Natural Fenosa will start on 1 January 2017 and will last four years. The sum of the deviations, adjusted to the interest rate, will stand at about 1.75 billion lei.  

(Reporter V. Bercu, editor M. Jantovan)