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Plan to cut peak-hour power rates for small businesses
The Ministry of Industry and Trade plans to reduce the price of "morning rush hour" electricity for small- and medium-sized enterprises, said deputy minister Bui Xuan Khu last Friday.
The ministry recently submitted a new electricity price proposal to the Government when they discovered that ‘rush hour’ prices posed difficulties for enterprises.
The ministry established two rush-hour time blocks three months ago, one between 9.30 and 11.30am and the other between 5 and 8pm in the evening.
Khu said it also submitted a new survey on the price impacts of electricity on enterprises to the Government. The report included surveys from 40,000 enterprises nationwide regarding electricity prices from March 1 to June 1.
All enterprises must pay a higher rate when using electricity during rush hours, said the official.
In April and May, about 70 per cent of enterprises reported a less than 10 per cent increase in their power cost, but for about 15 per cent of enterprises the cost increased by 20 per cent.
Enterprises with only one work shift paid most of the higher charges because they consumed most of their power during morning rush hour, said the report.
Many enterprises submitted complaints to the ministry when the average price for electricity increased by nearly 9 per cent, claiming the increased costs made production difficult.
Plastic and weaving industry representatives said the increased price forced them to raise the price of their products by 8 per cent.
Upon realisation of the impact, the ministry planned to keep its established ‘morning rush hours’ but with a 20 per cent cost reduction for small enterprises which used 35/22 kV electricity or less. The proposal was expected to be activated next month, Khu said.
According to the ministry, if the proposal is approved, the electric industry will lose VND350 billion (US$19.4 million) and the income earned from the higher ‘morning rush hour’ price would be reduced by 10 per cent.
The ministry has offered another possible solution: keeping the current price.
Khu said the impact on enterprises was not significant but the extra costs help encourage electricity savings and investment in new power sources to serve the increasing demand.
VietNamNet, VietNamNews
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