Author: newspaper "Kazpravda", Lyudmila Makarenko, Almaty

Public utilities became cheaper, and some utilities tariffs are planned to be frozen. However, it is not easy to judge on realistic nature of these plans.

Water is all around

Almaty residents got the option to check municipal authorities, which informed on lowering prices almost for all main types of public utilities. Checks may be carried out with the use of a pen, comparing payment receipts for the last year with new receipts. Along with the calculation of lowering of prices for services, its motives and grounds are named. Let's consider all by the order.

Water supply for domestic consumers has been reduced 4% since February 1, 2020. This type of service was already one of the cheapest in Almaty in comparison with other regions of Kazakhstan. At least, that was said by Bolat Sambetov, Head of the Department of the Committee on Regulation of Natural Monopolies in Almaty. Almaty water tariff takes the sixth place and sanitation tariff takes the third place as per the amount of tariff.

In addition, water and sanitation tariffs have been lowered by 10% due to review and reduction of costs for investment programs.

All this has started from the request of Almaty su enterprise to the competition authority on approval of threshold tariff for 2020-2024.  According to carried out analysis, the Department recommended to lower water tariff for population in February by reducing costs for re-distribution of loading for state-budget organizations and legal entities.

Average water and sanitation tariff is ­approved for the next 5 years and is not subject to review till 2024. However, there is a material reservation - "excluding increase of price for strategic commodity, that is electrical power generated at plants and its ­transportation".

 Hit the gas

According to information of the competition authority, ­reduction of price for household consumed gas has continued since 2018. Provider did not use funds received from consumers­, which were accounted by the authorized agency in investment program and estimation, therefore, compensation tariff for gas transportation was introduced with lowering from 6 009 KZT to 5 604 KZT. Recalculated funds were returned to consumers in the total amount of 485 mln KZT.

Furthermore, representatives of competition authority required from ­providing company to reduce prices in connection with increase of actual volumes of services provided. As a result, the tariff was reduced again – to 5 054 KZT. Later, review of investment program with reduction of costs by 5 bln KZT had impact on lowering prices. Thus, during 2018 gas prices were lowered three times, in general by 16%.

Regarding the current year, tariffs of KazTransGas Aimak JSC are already lowered from 29,63 KZT to 29,44 KZT per cubic meter due to lowering prices for gas­ transportation by 1,6%.

Heat maintenance

Final heat power tariff for population remains the same from the last year, when it was reduced by 18%. Combination of factors had impact on this. First of all, according to the order of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, competition authority reviewed investment programs and costs of estimation tariff of heat and ­power sector. As a result, AlmatyPowerStations JSC, Almatyteplocommunenergo LLP, Almatinskiye teploviye seti LLP (Almaty heat networks) obtained additional resources for price control.

However, planned increase of prices for heat power for population by 3% may be expected in this year. This option involves an agreement with Almatinskiye teploviye seti LLP to set threshold tariffs for the company's services.

Furthermore, situation in the market of heat consumption pushed to revision of heat consumption.  It's all about the mass transition of consumers to the use of heat power communal meter (CM), percentage of which has reached 94%. Accordingly, users who installed CM started to pay at the tariff lower by 36%. The resulting supplier costs could have been compensated by revising differentiated tariffs, but the municipality and the utility companies went the other way.

– At the initiative of our Department and city administration (akimat), the resulting load, which was supposed to be distributed evenly to all consumers, was directed to state-budget organizations. This decision has allowed to control heat power tariffs, - Bolat Sambetov, Head of the Department of the Committee on Regulation of Natural Monopolies in Almaty, explained.

Calculate and claim

However, it is worth noting that the price optimism in the city utility market is still in manual control mode and is based mainly on the current cost of electrical power. Prices for electrical power was lowered for Almaty residents by 2.8%.

It was resulted from reduction of costs for electrical power transition for AlatauZharykCompany JSC by 10%, and measures for tariff control of KEGOC JSC at the level of 2018, they have been applied as antimonopoly regulation.

But at the end of last year, AlmatyeEnergoSbyt LLP applied to the Department for regulation of natural monopolies with an application to revise­ the electrical power tariff. There are several reasons. First of all, this is an increase of 30% in electrical power tariffs of Financial Settlement Center of ­Renewable Energy LLP. Increase in cost of electrical power transportation via networks of KEGOC - by 12%, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy - by 2%, and AZhC - by 6%. This should also include an increase in the cost of adjusting power by 5% and balancing electrical power by 11%.

Taking this information into account, reduction of costs by 6.4% for maintenance and operation of AlmatyEnergoSbyt LLP, required by the competition authority, does not look significant. Thus, since January 1, 2020, electrical power tariff in Almaty has increased by 4,6% - from 16,36 KZT to  17,12 KZT per 1 kWh.

Change in the tariff was ­preceded by discussion at public hearings with citizens, representatives of public associations, deputies of the maslikhat,­ and independent experts. Tariff was accepted with increase, but provided that it will not change till the end of the year.

Bolat Sambetov, the Head of the competition authority, also said about public support for market control, and he advices to check payment receipts and take the relevant actions, if required.

- If the consumer is charged more than it should have been, it is mandatory to contact the competition authority. All accounts will be checked. If an unscheduled increase is confirmed, the monopolist will be fined. Funds will be returned to consumers. The fines are high, so the monopolists try not to violate our regulations – - the expert assures.

Link to the source: https://www.kazpravda.kz/articles/view/printsip-sderzhek-i-protivovesov