ZSA: The increase in electricity bills by 40%-60% is unacceptable!

In recent days, the association "Farmers' Council" has been receiving countless calls from farmers expressing confusion and outrage over January electricity bills, which are 40%-60% higher than bills for December.

For farmers, the increase in the amount of electricity bills is formed in one bill item – “mandatory power procurement component per ampere”, i.e. payment for connection capacity, even though it is not used during the off-season. The Ministry of Economics cites the abandonment of excess capacity as a solution, however, this was only possible in 2017. Starting from this year, it is not possible to partially reduce the capacity in a facility with one electricity connection and increase it as necessary. The essence and purpose of the new cost item “mandatory power procurement component per ampere” is also not understood.

Juris Lazdins, Chairman of the Association “Farmers’ Council”: “Such a rapid increase in electricity bills for farms that have no alternative is unacceptable. The variable part of the electricity bill is formed in proportion to the electricity consumed, while the fixed part depends on the voltage level and consumption group. For example, in crop and vegetable growing, the active season, when high electricity capacity is required, is a couple of months a year. The rest of the time, capacity must be reduced, however, AS “Sadales tīkls”, according to the information available to us, has not offered such an option as a partial temporary reduction of capacity since January 1, 2018. As a solution, farmers are offered to install two electricity meters at the facility and disconnect one of them for a period of up to 6 months. These are again additional costs, which in some cases could be measured in thousands of euros. We believe that the government should assess whether changes to the financing model of the mandatory procurement component were not a hasty step, as well as seek reasonable solutions for the existence of small and medium-sized consumers in rural areas.”

Uvis Slakteris, owner of SIA “Mālnieki”, said: “My farm has two connections, a total of 660 amperes, and since January 1, I have to pay 1.60 euros for each ampere. I can not turn on a single light bulb, but I still have to pay 1,056 euros per month just for the connection. Over the course of a year, that is already ten thousand euros just to have sufficient capacity to dry grain during the season. I support the position of AS “Sadales tīkli” that we must abandon excess capacity, but I ask you to understand us too – we need greater capacity for 2-3 months a year and we want to abandon it for the remaining months. The situations of each farmer are different, so it would only be normal if cooperation with AS “Sadales tīkli” was prompt and individual. Last year, temporarily connecting and disconnecting large capacities was not a problem. Why are there such drastic changes this year?”

PRes_Electricity bill increase of 40%-60% is unacceptable for farmers