Power bills shock as new tariffs set to start next month
Customers paying power bills. Photo/FILE
What you need to know:
- Households consuming 200 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity this month will, for instance, pay at least Sh4,712.5 up from the Sh4,302.3 they would have paid based on the current tariffs.
- The escalation in billings is linked to the planned increase in the fixed charge and the energy charge, which account for half of the monthly power costs.
- The fixed charge for domestic consumers will rise to Sh150 next month from the current Sh120 while the energy charge per kWh will rise to Sh13.68 from Sh11.62.
Consumer electricity bills are set to rise steeply next month when the second phase of the billing structure that the energy sector regulator set last December comes into force. This will add to the burden of rising cost of living that started in January.
Middle-class households and industrial consumers will bear the highest burden when electricity distributor Kenya Power brings the new tariffs into force, raising their monthly bills by at least 10 per cent.
Households consuming 200 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity this month will, for instance, pay at least Sh4,712.5 up from the Sh4,302.3 they would have paid based on the current tariffs, a 10 per cent jump if the variable components remain fairly stable.
Small commercial entities using 15,000 kWh of power will pay Sh396,549 or 10 per cent more than the Sh360,249 they would have paid under the current tariff regime.
The escalation in billings is linked to the planned increase in the fixed charge – payable regardless of consumption levels — and the energy charge, which account for half of the monthly power costs.
The fixed charge for domestic consumers will rise to Sh150 next month from the current Sh120 while the energy charge per kWh will rise to Sh13.68 from Sh11.62.
Commercial firms consuming up to 15,000 kWh will pay Sh14 in energy charge per kWh next month, up from the current Sh12 they have been paying since last December.
The new tariffs will remain in place until July next year when the energy charge is expected to drop marginally for the various categories of consumers. Fixed charges will either remain unchanged or rise further for industrial firms.
The looming cost escalation will stand in stark contrast to the decline in power bills that Energy secretary Davis Chirchir had promised consumers six months ago when the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) set the new tariffs regime.
To read the full report CLICK HERE
