Thiruvananthapuram: The electricity tariff will go up by 9 paise for a unit from February 1 to May 31 in the State. Domestic consumers (connected load below 1,000 W) who use up to 40 units a month, will be exempted from the hike.
The Electricity Regulatory Commission has ordered that 9 paise per unit should be charged as fuel surcharge from other consumers for four months.
An amount of Rs. 87.07 crore that the electricity board had spent for buying power from outside the State from April 1 to June 30 last year is being collected through the new levy. The surcharge amount will be mentioned separately in the bill.
The electricity board had demanded that a surcharge of Rs 14 should be imposed. The board had also demanded that Rs 3 should be imposed as surcharge for the periods between October 1, 2021 and December 31, and between January 1 and March 31 last year. The commission decided that the demand need not be taken up for the time being and that it could be considered at the time of reconciling the accounts of the board.
Will the hike continue?
Since imported coal is also being used for producing thermal power, the cost of electricity is increasing. In these circumstances, the surcharge could increase in the coming months too, experts point out.
