Electricity tariff will increase by an average of 1.45 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for the first three months of next year. The increase is due to the higher cost of electricity which in turn was sparked off by the rise in fuel oil prices.
Fuel cost constitutes about 50 per cent of the cost of electricity, but the increase in tariff has been small compared to the rise in fuel oil prices. This is because of the enhanced efficiency of the electricity industry, resulting in cost savings being passed on to consumers.
- "Enhanced efficiency"? A lot of it probably had to do with a wholesale switch to natural gas as fuel source. Once attempts at improving efficiency reach diminishing returns (eg, you can only switch to NG once), we could expect to see electricity rates start to keep pace with oil price increases.