Skopje, 2 March 2023 (MIA) – The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) adopted a decision Thursday proposing a new maximum and minimum tariff for the price of water in Skopje, if the maximum tariff is adopted the price of water would rise by Mden 29.5 on a monthly level, but if the minimum tariff is accepted, the price would remain almost the same.

The decision, said ERC President Marko Bislimovski on Thursday, will be submitted to the Skopje Waterworks Public Enterprise, whose Management Board will have to adopt a decision which will then be put to vote at the Council of the City of Skopje. The whole procedure should end within 150 days.

“The current price for households is Mden 31.87. With our decision we propose that the minimum tariff is changed to Mden 31.53, and the maximum tariff to Mden 34.82. The minimum tariff would be lower than the current price, while the maximum tariff would be higher by 9 percent. If the maximum tariff is accepted the monthly expense would increase by Mden 29.5 on a monthly level. I think that Mden 29.5 or 30 is not an issue for the businesses and the citizens. It’s only 30 denars on a monthly level,” said Bislimovski.

The ERC President noted that once the proposal is submitted to Skopje Waterworks, they will be able to adopt their own decision based on the range of the minimum and maximum tariff and then submit it to the Skopje City Council for approval.

He stressed that the minimum tariff might also lead to a reduction in the price of water and that it ultimately depends on Skopje Waterworks and on the Skopje City Council.

 “If they decide on the minimum tariff, it would lead to a reduction of the price of water in the City of Skopje. The majority of public enterprises that submitted requests to the ERC did so largely due to the increased electricity expenses, and for the most part their calculations took into account the prices of electricity on the HUPX power exchange. Fortunately, they have been provided with a lower price of electricity by ESM Sales, which has contributed to the stabilization of the situation,” said Bislimoski.

He noted that the maximum period within which the procedure should be completed is 150 days.

Bislimovski, referring to the other utility enterprises in the country, said that all have a certain shortage of funds due to increased expenses, but that they should improve their efficiency.

 “We can’t pass the entire burden to the citizens and increase the price of water services. Everyone should take responsibility and the fact is that these public enterprises have too many employees. For example, the company in charge of distributing electricity in the country has around 1.750 employees; on the other hand, I guarantee you that the waterworks enterprises of the five largest cities in the country have around 3.000-4.000 employees. Everyone is free to determine how many employees they need, but I think that the waterworks enterprises should improve the efficiency of their work,” said Bislimoski. ad/nn/

Photo: MIA Archive

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