Utility consumers in Ghana will from July 1 pay more for electricity and water following an announcement of increments by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission for the third quarter of the year.
According to a statement from the PURC electricity tariffs would go up by 3.49 per cent across all customer categories, with water rising by 0.85 per cent.
The upward adjustments form part of the quarterly review mandate of the PURC, which tracks movements in key operational factors that affect utility service providers.
According to the Commission, the review considered movements in the Ghana cedi to the United States dollar exchange rate, domestic inflation, the electricity generation mix, and the cost of natural gas used to power thermal plants.
The Commission explained that the quarterly adjustments are intended to maintain the real value of existing tariffs, enabling utility service providers to remain financially viable while continuing to deliver reliable services to consumers.
A three-month average inflation rate of 3.43 per cent was applied, down from 4.17 per cent in the second quarter, while the weighted average cost of natural gas declined by 1.58 per cent to USD7.9708 per MMBtu. The hydro-thermal generation mix remained unchanged at 20.9 per cent hydro and 79.1 per cent thermal generation.
According to the commission, under the revised electricity rates, the lifeline tariff for residential consumers using up to 30 kilowatt-hours monthly has increased from 86.9Gp per kilowatt-hour to 89.93Gp per kilowatt-hour.
For water consumers, the residential lifeline tariff for consumption up to five cubic metres has risen from 593.49Gp per cubic metre to 598.54Gp per cubic metre. Service charges for all customer categories remain unchanged.
