We cannot publish tariff formula online – PURC

The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has said it cannot directly publish online its formula for determining electricity tariffs, because the final billing of consumers entails other factors which the it has no control over.

The utilities regulator said it has no control over the taxes and levies that are inbuilt into the final bill given to the consumer.

The Executive Secretary of the PURC, Samuel Sarpong in an interview with thebftonline.com, said the Commission can only task the ECG and GWCL including other power distributing companies to publish their billing formula online.

“The Energy Minister is talking about a bill but a bill is issued by the distributing companies like ECG, GWCL and others. So, it’s the distribution companies who should put it on their website not PURC. This is because we don’t control taxes and levies. We control the tariff but remember that what is on the bill is not only tariff but its includes taxes and levies. The distribution companies would have to do the build up to arrive at the final cost which is referred to as the bill.

With ECG, they already publish something they call reckoner which they publish in the papers. We don’t publish reckoner but we expect ECG and others to put the reckoner on their websites and so it’s true that it’s needed but it has to be done by the distribution companies. It is our mandate to order the ECG and others to place that on their website and we have issued that directive,” he said

The PURC in pursuant to its statutory responsibility has a Tariff Setting Guideline which guides the Commission, utility companies and other stakeholders as a transparent basis for setting rates for both electricity and water.

The Minister of Energy Boakye Kyeremateng Agyarko has since last month led a campaign and has directed the PURC, which is a government’s agency under the ministry, to publish online the formula for tariffs to enable consumers on their own verify how much they are to pay per their consumption.

Meanwhile the Ministry of Energy currently developing the guidelines in respect of natural gas services. In preparing the Guidelines, the Commission is enjoined by law to take the following into account, consumer interest, Investor interest, the cost of production of the service and assurance of the financial integrity of the public utility.