ACM publishes maximum tariffs for electricity and water in Statia, Saba | THE DAILY HERALD

 

SABA/ST. EUSTATIUS–The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets ACM has set new maximum tariffs for electricity and drinking water in St. Eustatius and Saba as of January 1, 2019.

It concerns the maximum fixed usage tariffs and the maximum variable usage tariffs which St. Eustatius Utility Company STUCO and Saba Electric Company (SEC) may charge consumers to cover the cost of the production and supply of electricity and drinking water. ACM also sets the user connection and reconnection charges for 2019.

Pursuant to the BES Electricity and Drinking Water Act, it is ACM’s duty to annually set cost-covering tariffs. This means that ACM has calculated what it costs the utility companies of Statia and Saba to produce electricity and drinking water and to supply this to their consumers. ACM publishes the tariff decisions for electricity and drinking water on the ACM website.

The variable usage tariff for electricity in Statia drops from US $0.3105/kWh to $0.2965/kWh. The cost for the fixed usage tariff for electricity will increase for consumers with the lowest connection capacity by $1 extra per month.

The variable usage tariff for drinking water in Statia will decrease from $8.34 to $7.87 per cubic metre of drinking water. This reduction is caused by the increased production. The fixed cost of drinking water production is divided across a larger amount of drinking water, resulting in lower cost per cubic meter of drinking water, ACM said in a statement on Wednesday.

The cost for the fixed usage tariff for drinking water in Statia has also been lowered from $71.06 to $69.92 per connection per month, excluding subsidy. The connection charges for new connections have only been adjusted for inflation. The reconnection charge has remained unchanged at $40.

The variable usage tariff for electricity in Saba will be reduced from $0.3735/kWh to $0.3516/kWh. This decrease follows from the fact that solar park one was put into service and from the expectation that solar park two will also be put into service in 2019. As a result, and despite higher fuel prices, the cost per kilowatt-hour will decrease.

Without the production of solar energy, the variable usage tariff would have been $0.4319/kWh as of January 1, 2019, it was stated.

The cost for the fixed usage tariff for electricity in Saba remains unchanged. The charges for new connections have only been adjusted for inflation. The reconnection charge has remained unchanged at $40.

In order to take account of the affordability of electricity and drinking water for small households in particular, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management have the option of reducing the fixed usage tariff for electricity and drinking water through subsidies. As soon as these subsidy measures have been announced, STUCO will notify its customers of the tariffs it will charge as of January 1, 2019.

Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/83837-acm-publishes-maximum-tariffs-for-electricity-and-water-in-statia-saba

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