The latest International Monetary Fund Staff Report on Fiji stated that tariffs for all goods and services provided by public enterprises should be raised to full cost recovery levels.
The report said this would eliminate losses and also encourage private investment in these areas.
The IMF said an example is the Fiji Electricity Authority’s tariffs which is amongst the lowest in the region.
It said electricity tariffs should be raised to reflect the cost of imported fuel and adjusted over time in line with changes in import costs.
However, the report said tariff adjustments should be accompanied by well-targeted transfers to protect the poor.
The IMF Staff Report revealed that the Fiji authorities are considering raising tariffs, strengthening oversight of public enterprises and moving regulatory functions to an independent entity to improve governance.
Meanwhile, FEA chief executive officer Hasmukh Patel has already asked for the reinstatement of the fuel surcharge for consumers.
The fuel surcharge proposed is 6.51 cents per unit.
Patel said the fuel surcharge is necessary.
The Commerce Commission is expected to complete their investigations on the proposal made by Fiji Electricity Authority to reactivate the fuel surcharge of 6.51 cents per unit that was scrapped in March last year.
Commission chairman Dr Mahendra Reddy said touring the Dam is a very important aspect of their investigations and they would also like the public to know about the process.
Dr Reddy has gone to the Monasavu Dam today to assess the water level as FEA chief executive Hasmukh Patel had stated that the water level at the Monasavu Dam is low and is very close to the critical level of 715 metres.
Patel added FEA had been running on a loss of about $4 million for the past four months.
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Public enterprises should raise their tariffs
