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The heating fee will increase and you will have to pay throughout the year, and not just during the heating season. Open source photos
Local elections were held in Ukraine and, as predicted by “Strana”, the question of increasing heating rates was back on the agenda.
Thermal workers in Zaporizhzhya have already warned that the price of heating is rising by 8%, from 1,339.32 UAH to 1,448.65 UAH per gigacalorie. The water rate is still being calculated, but it will most likely grow as well.
On November 25, the issue of the tariff will be discussed by the Poltava authorities. It is not yet clear how exactly the rates will change, but local utilities expect them to be “economically justified”, and this is an increase of at least 10%.
With a low start in other cities. As a NERC member Olga Babiy told us, the National Commission approved a new gas price in the heating tariff: 6500 hryvnia per thousand cubic meters. For comparison: at the rates approved in the spring, gas was charged at UAH 3850, that is, as you can see, the increase is quite significant.
“Until this price is approved, it will still be discussed with the licensees,” says Babiy. But, if the new price tag is agreed, the increased rates can go into effect on December 1 of this year. That is, Ukrainians will receive higher payments for Christmas.
“Strana” understood how heating rates would change in Ukraine.
New formula
According to Olga Babiy, NERC plans to change the price of gas in heating rates. As you know, for this heating season, utilities have maintained special gas prices, but they will also grow, although not as fast as market prices.
“According to the forecasts that Naftogaz has given us, the price of the PSO will be 6,500 hryvnia per thousand cubic meters,” Babiy explained.
For comparison: The rates, which NERC approved this spring, include gas for 3,850 hryvnias. And at the beginning of the heating season last year, the tariff included gas at 6800 hryvnia per thousand cubic meters.
“That is, if the rate changes, it will be the same as in the fall of 2019,” says Olga Babiy.
But the new gas price in the structure of the heating tariff has not yet been definitively approved. “The decision is made in two stages. The first is the negotiation of the price of the NERC, it is over. The second stage is the discussion on the ground and, in fact, the approval,” says Babiy.
At the same time, according to her, Cherkassy has already refused to go up. “They still have a gas price of 3850 hryvnia per thousand cubic meters in their tariff. I don’t know, to be honest, no matter how they intend to work with that tariff, it may be a political decision,” Babiy said.
But there are still very few “refuseniks”. On the contrary, most heating companies ask to increase the tariff even more, to change not only the price of gas, but also other components of the tariff, in particular wages.
“For many, the rate includes the salaries of technical personnel (electricians, locksmiths, drivers, etc.) at the 7.5-8.5 thousand level, but in reality, these specialists charge between 15 and 16 thousand and more. industry – 30% “- says Babiy.
If NERC also reviews the salary component, the rate will skyrocket even more. Also, not only for heating, but also for water and electricity. “In the structure of the heating tariff, the share of wages is 10%, in gas distribution – 40%, through water services – 35%, electricity distribution – 30%”, gives an example Babiy.
Thermal workers themselves traditionally complain: they simply cannot work at current rates.
“In September, the rate for gas transportation increased by 40%, in October, the same story. As for gas, we are already in the red. People are sitting for three days, many are resigning. We have 25% of open vacancies and we cannot fill them. quarantine, there was a ban on debt collection, many repairs were not carried out on time, there was simply no money for this in the summer. As a result, the wear and tear of the network, up to a 70%, which is plagued by massive pipe breaks and accidents, “we were told at one of the regional heating companies. …
What will happen to the fees?
If the price of gas and the salary component are changed in the heating formula, the tariff will increase by at least 10-15%. But this is only the tip of the iceberg.
“There is also a hidden increase. In spring, NERC approved the so-called two-part rates. One part is constant, this is around 80%. It includes the cost of purchasing gas, electricity, taxes, salaries. This part of the rate it will be paid by consumers only during the heating season. The second part of the tariff is 20%, and it is planned to be “spread out” for the whole year, that is, it will be necessary to pay not only during the heating season, but all In addition, this component should approximately double. But since the monthly sums are relatively small consumers will not immediately notice the increase. This money should be spent on economic activities, network repairs. We consider this to be fair, since, for example , in the summer, when repair work is needed, Teplokommunenergo has no money, because massive payments come from consumers only during the heating season. And according to n the new formula, the financing will be regular ”, told us a source in one of the regional teplokommunenergo.
In the spring, no more than 10% of heating workers will switch to rates of two types. A prerequisite was the transition to direct contracts with consumers, and not everyone signed them. Since the beginning of the quarantine, innovation has been postponed. Now the utilities are waiting for Rada to solve this problem. “Otherwise, the new tariffs may seem inoperative,” says Olga Babiy.
“But what about the promise to cut tariffs in half?”
At the same time, according to the head of the Ukrainian Housing Union, Alexander Skubchenko, the new rates are initially illegal.
“On June 10, the Cabinet of Ministers amended its resolution determining the formation of the heating tariff. The new version establishes that the tariff for the next heating season includes the price of gas for the last heating season. At the same Time, the Minister of Regional Development Chernyshov called this price – 4048 hryvnia per thousand. As you can see, this is much less than the 6,500 hryvnias that the NERC is going to include in the tariff. Play it safe. Now the price of gas has risen, but the Cabinet resolution remains in force. This means that any gas price in the heating formula that differs from UAH 4048 is illegal. And the revision of the tariff according to with a different gas price is a crime. The Housing Union will write a statement to the National Police with the requirement to find out why current legislative acts are being violated “, we explained Skubchenko said.
Alternatively, the Cabinet of Ministers will have to cancel its June amendments.
According to Skubchenko, before tariffs are raised, they must be audited to understand how economically justified they are. “In every hryvnia of the heating tariff, according to estimates, 30 kopecks is pure theft. The tariff includes unreasonably large volumes of consumption and other” roof “components. I am not even talking about the fact that a year ago the president promised deal with the fees and cut them twice. Which, apparently, didn’t happen, “says Skubchenko.
