ELECTRICITY PRICES SLASHED IN THE NEW TARIFF STRUCTURE.

The electricity regulatory authority through its executive director Dr. Zaria Tibalwa Waako announced a one percent reduction in electricity tariffs for 2022 at the media centre in Kampala.

ELECTRICITY PRICES SLASHED IN THE NEW TARIFF STRUCTURE.

Effective January 2022, all customers served by energy company Umeme will experience a cut in prices of electricity in the new electricity tariff structure.

The electricity regulatory authority through its executive director Dr. Zaria Tibalwa Waako announced a one percent reduction in electricity tariffs for 2022 at the media centre in Kampala.

The changes that are in line with the aspirations of the national development plan (iii) and sustainable development goal number 7 are aimed at promoting accelerated access to clean energy for improved welfare of society for social economic transformation of all Ugandans.

The minister for energy and mineral development Dr. Ruth Nankabirwa said that the amendments to the existing tariff structures are within the law and they are among the 23 directives issued by the president at the beginning of his current term of leadership.

In the new amendment, a cooking tariff structure is to be introduced with the main aim of displacing charcoal and other bio mass sources of cooking fuel and this will be implemented by making the cost of electric cooking lower than the cost of cooking using charcoal.

The new amendments will also have the pilot tariff for industrial parks which will aim at improving the competitiveness of Uganda’s manufacturing sector and this will commence mainly in two industrial parks of Lao Shen in Kapeeka and MMP industrial park in Buikwe district.

In addition to the government of Uganda will also provide the necessary financial subsidies incase of failure in covering the shortfall which is 5 US cents per Kw/h.

In the government’s commitment to make electricity affordable for all Ugandans and to promote the productive use of electricity, a lifeline tariff will also be re categorized in the new amendment.

The lifeline tariff is a price for a minimal package of units of electricity which was put in place to help low income earners access affordable electricity in Uganda.

The minister also addressed plans of targeting medium-sized financial institutions to partner with the power distributor to finance house hold needs for electric cooking equipment due to lowered electricity costs.

 Story by Abdul Kimera