PETROL, DIESEL, WATER AND ELECTRICITY MORE EXPENSIVE

PETROL, DIESEL, WATER AND ELECTRICITY MORE EXPENSIVE

WILLEMSTAD – From Tuesday 4 June 2019, the regulated rate for gasoline and gasoline will increase diesel in Curaçao. Water and electricity are also becoming more expensive from Saturday 1 June 2019. The Telecommunications and Post Office (BT&P) reports this in its monthly press release about this. BT&P monitors the price developments of oil products and of utilities. Rate calculation fuel products The tariff structure of Mogas 95, Gas oil LSD, LPG 20 and LPG 100 knows the elements 1. Purchase price, 2. LSD import tax, 3. Curoil margin, 4. Excise duties, 5. Surplus / Deficit (Recovery), 6. Cross-subsidy, 7. Wholesale O.B. 6%, 8. Dealer margin and 9. Retail O.B. 6%. For some elements the zero rate applies – temporarily or not. The wholesale rate includes the first seven elements while the retail rate all nine elements. The purchase price, with which the calculation starts, becomes monthly for the following month determined on the basis of Curoil’s purchase invoices for the previous month. So: the purchase prices that are used for the month of June are based on Curoil’s purchase invoices for the month of April. These purchase prices are also checked against the international price quotations. Any other on is also taken into account the purchase related costs (eg inspection costs). Via the “Surplus / Deficit” element Due to this 2 month delay, the differences between the regulated purchase price and actual purchases settled in a given month. The end-user rates for Mogas 95 and Gas oil LSD are mainly increasing due to the result of a substantial increase in both purchase prices and the correction in the surplus / deficit component. However, these increased purchase prices are in line with the average international price quotation (Platts) in April 2019. Furthermore, as an illustration referred to a news item *) from the Netherlands from the end of April (the invoice month on which currently rates for June are based): https://bit.ly/2Qv3XMX ( * Source: RTL news). Water and electricity tariff calculation The tariff structure for water and electricity has two components: the basic tariff and the fuel clause. The fuel clause consists of two elements: purchasing electricity and fuel costs. The “purchases” are based on the price of energy supplied by third parties, such as wind energy, solar energy and the CRU. The fuel costs concern the costs of energy generation by Aqualectra itself. However, the stakes of the different ones vary every month means of production, also called ‘the production mix’. The height of the fuel clause is therefore determined monthly by BT&P on the basis of Aqualectra’s forecast of what the production mix will be, in this case for the month of June. As a month later, it appears the component was too high or too low, it is corrected. In this case it therefore concerns the month of April. The basic tariff for both water and electricity is determined once a year by BT&P. This rate includes all other (fixed) costs for the production of electricity and water and all distribution and delivery costs such as personnel costs, maintenance costs, depreciation etc. It concerns an increase in the rates for electricity and water that mainly is caused by rising fuel prices and a slightly higher correction factor for electricity, concerning the deviations in the realized fuel costs compared to the forecasts for April, compared to last month. Approval and adoption The BT&P advises the Council of Ministers (RvM) on the new rates. Only after the The Supervisory Board approves the proposal, the Minister of Economic Development states charged with energy matters, the rates are fixed. Those are the maximum rates that a month be used for a long time. With this procedure, those international and local factors takes into account, BT&P supervisor monitors independently and transparently the continuity and fairness of the supply of fuel, water and electricity to the locals. The exact price adjustments can be found at http://www.btnp.org.