The chairman of the Public Utilities Commission spoke at a press conference about the proposed revision of electricity tariffs to be submitted to the Cabinet today.
There, the chairman of the Public Utility Commission stated that it was proposed to increase the electricity bill for consumers from 0 to 30 units by a factor of 2,000.
The chairman of the Public Utility Commission, Mr. Janaka Rathnayake, added,
“Yesterday, after analysing a few measurements of the amendment on electricity that is going to the cabinet today, it is going to be proposed to increase the electricity bill of the consumers between 0-30, 31-61, 61-90 and 91-120 units. I believe this is a negative development. We know the reason. It has been proposed to increase the electricity rate by between 0 and 30 percent of the amount paid by consumers, typically by 2003. There are about 50 lakh people in Sri Lanka who use less than 90 units. These are the consumers with low incomes. If their electricity bill is increased in this manner, we know that these individuals will be unable to pay it in light of their current circumstances. It is anticipated to increase by 2000% between 0 and 30. This proposal has been presented to get an additional income of about 80 billion next year from all consumers who use less than 120 units between 31-60. This is an unfair proposal. The Ceylon Electricity Board has made an operating profit for the past four months and this month.”
