Kuala Lumpur: The government is urged to postpone implementation of the updated energy pricing surcharge for medium- and high-voltage industrial customers, which went into effect on January 1.
According to Huazong President Tan Sri T.C Goh, it received numerous complaints from local manufacturers who claim the increase of more than 566 per cent from the present rate of 3.7 sen/kWh to between 20 sen and 27.7 sen/kWh was too abrupt and intolerable.
He gave the example of a manufacturer in Selangor who complained that his electricity bill for the previous month (for 308,586 kWh) was a whopping RM61,717; under the previous power tariff of 3.7 sen/kWh, he only had to pay RM 11,417.68 for the same amount of consumption. Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) had increased the power tariff by 20 sen/kWh.
In other words, he now has to pay an additional RM 50,299.52, or five times as much.
Goh claimed that numerous local manufacturers have bemoaned the fact that such a sharp increase in the cost of electricity will unavoidably have “a devastating impact” on all sectors of the economy, no matter how little. This is particularly true given the recent revisions to the Employment Act of 1955 (Amended 2022), which increased the minimum salary, the rising cost of raw materials, rising bank interest rates, the effects of fierce global market competition, etc.
“Such an unfavourable development is certainly a severe blow to a majority of our local manufacturers and businesses, who are currently still struggling to recover from the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the last three years!” he said in a statement, Wednesday.
He thus hoped the government would be more considerate with their plights and to temporarily suspend the implementation of the revised electricity tariff surcharge for medium voltage (MV) and high voltage (HV) industrial users.
He also urged the government to engage with the representatives of the local manufacturers and businesses, in order to better understand their plights over the revised power tariff, and to find “win-win” solutions for all quarters concerned.
Goh who is also President of The Federation of Chinese Associations Sabah (FCAS) went on to note that, the government had previously announced that Medium voltage (MV) and high voltage (HV) users among industry participants including multinational corporations (MNCs) will face a surcharge at the rate of 20 sen/kWj for the period of January 1 to June 30, 2023.
Some local manufacturers and businesses have estimated that such a drastic revision would result in more than 40% increase in their electricity bills, while some large-scale businesses too may see a spike in their electricity bills of between 25 per cent to 30 per cent, depending on the category of power tariff which they are in.
He thus hoped the government could quickly address such a pressing issue before it triggers a far-reaching adverse chain effect, including further boosting the ongoing inflation, and inevitably derailing our economic recovery.
However, he welcomed and supported the government’s recent assurance that the power tariff for domestic consumers will remain the same, for now.
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