Previous Story
Padarath: Gov’t Electricity Rate Hike “Unbearable Burden”
Posted On 05 Apr 2024
Princes Town MP, Barry Padarath said that the contents of a report in yesterday’s Business Guardian headlined “RIC Recommends Doubling of Electricity Rates by 2028” is deeply troubling and worrisome for the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
The MP said that this Development comes at a time when the cost of living is already so high in the country and against the backdrop of property tax, higher water rates, high food prices and high unemployment.
The Opposition Shadow Minister for Public Utilities called on the government to say whether they intend to remove the subsidy on gas that T&TEC purchases for its operations. He added that this has been a question that he has been raising for quite some time yet the government has been silent on the matter.
Padarath stated that it is the cabinet that sets the price that NGC charges T&TEC for natural Gas and once the subsidy is removed, it would drive the cost of electricity up exponentially. The article stated that “a median household’s residential bill would instead increase as much as 204 per cent if the NGC were to unsubsidize the price of natural gas by 2028.”
The Princes Town MP stated that the government needs to tell the population if this is part of the plan for T&TEC ahead of the next General Election. He added that the citizens must know what they are getting themselves into.
The MP stated that the government was stalling the recommendations of the RIC at the cabinet in an effort to brace fallout ahead of the next general election.
MP Padarath indicated that the population could not continue to sustain additional taxes and higher utility rates on an additional three dollars increase in minimum wage. He further stated that the article clearly pointed out that over 1.4 billion dollars was still owed in outstanding receivables to T&TEC by the state, which compounded T&TEC’s financial situation.
The Princes Town MP stated that the Opposition would resist all moves inside and outside of the Parliament to increase utility rates at this time in the country. He called on citizens to stand their ground with the Opposition and added that the government needed to be upfront with citizens on their intention regarding the gas subsidy to T&TEC. He pointed out that once electricity goes up then everything else would go up, therefore further burdening citizens.
