Kosovo* doubles electricity prices for households

Kosovo* has doubled the electricity prices for households with the consumption over 800 kilowatt-hours per month due to the energy crisis and high costs of electricity imports.

Tariffs for households for the consumption of up to 800 kWh per month will remain the same, while consumption over 800 kWh per month will be billed with 5.9 euro cents during the low overnight tariff and 12.52 cents during the rest of the day, the Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) said on its website.

22-30 percent of households consume less then 800 kWh

The prices for the consumption of up to 800 kWh are 2.89 euro cents for lower tariff, and 6.75 for higher tariff. New tariffs entered into force today and they are valid until March 31, 2023, according to ERO.

The government said only 30 percent of households consume more than 800 kWh during the winter, while power supplier KESCO said the share is 22 percent. The first proposal by ERO was to increase prices for the consumption of more than 600 kWh, but the government rejected it.

Kosovo* imports 40 percent of its electricity at prices are even seven times higher than a year ago

The decision to increase prices is aimed at lowering the consumption of households, and making citizens save energy, in the situation where Kosovo* is forced to import 40 percent of its electricity at prices seven times higher than a year ago. In December, the government was even forced to introduce systematic, temporary electricity outages of two hours.

Earlier, distribution company KEDS said it paid EUR 242 per MWh for imports in October and EUR 332 in November.

Bills to increase 5-30 percent

The government has calculated that the increase in prices would push household bills consuming from 850 to 1,200 kWh in the range of 5-30 percent. The calculation takes into account that 60 percent of consumption is in the higher tariff.

In order to lower the planned increase of electricity prices, the government has secured EUR 100 million for subsidies, local media reported.

Prime Minister of Kosovo* Albin Kurti said that during the previous months the country imported as much as 40 percent of electricity and that the prices were seven times higher than the year before. The expenses are enormous so the government can not continue to secure the funds from the state budget for buying electricity abroad, he added.

According to the government, for the consumption of 850 kWh the bill would be EUR 52.2, which is EUR 2.5 or 5 percent higher, while the rise is EUR 20 per household or 30 percent for the consumption of 1,200 kWh.