Due to the continuing fuel crisis and price hikes, the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission has announced a determination to approve an interim 5.91 cents fuel surcharge per kilowatt hour for Energy Fiji Limited due to the increasing fuel prices, and a 22.5 percent increase in bus fare.
FCCC CEO, Senikavika Jiuta says this was decided after a comprehensive assessment by the Commission and ensuring the continuity of power supply and transportation services.
This will come into effect from next Tuesday.
Following the announcement, Minister for Finance, Esrom Immanuel has confirmed that the government will fully subsidise the 22.5 percent bus fare rise, which means that bus commuters will not have to pay the increased fares.
He says this is on top of the existing 10 percent bus fare subsidy.
He says the government will fully absorb the 22.5 percent increase at an additional fiscal cost of $2 million per month.
The Minister says for all rural service license providers (RSL) and boat operators providing transportation services to students, the Government will also support with additional vouchers to cater for the increase in their fuel cost.
Immanuel says the Ministry of Education will work together with these operators to ensure continued transportation services for our students and cost recovery for the service providers.
For those receiving social welfare assistance that includes transport support, the government has already increased their transport allowance by an additional 50 percent per month.
Immanuel also confirms that the interim 5.91 cents fuel surcharge per kilowatt hour for Energy Fiji Limited, will also be subsidised for those earning $30,000 and below.
He says this will come an estimated additional cost of around $4 million annually.
The Minister says currently, more than 57,000 domestic electricity customers receive electricity at a subsidised tariff of 17.67 cents per kilowatt hour, lower than the normal residential tariff of 34.01 cents per kilowatt hour and at an annual cost of approximately $10 million to the Government.
Immanuel says they will also expand this subsidy of 5.91 cents to all MSMEs that have an annual gross income turnover of less than $30,000.
These are interim measures based on the global crisis.
The FCCC CEO also hopes that with the interim fuel surcharge, EFL would not implement the power rationing as planned on June 1st.
