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JPSCo Defends Application for Rate Increase

April 1, 2004

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Chief Marketing Officer of the Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPSCo), Nigel Grant, has sought to justify his company’s application for a tariff increase, while addressing residents of Port Antonio at a consultation organised by the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR).
The consultation, held at the Old Port Antonio Marina on Tuesday (March 30), was the third in a series of similar meetings being staged across the country to solicit the views and experiences of Jamaicans, as part of the process to guide the OUR in its effort to make a decision on the application.The application for a tariff increase was made to the OUR on March 1.
Outlining the reasons for the application for a tariff increase, Mr. Grant said it would reflect the real cost of the service being provided, restore the financial health of the company, provide good returns to the company’s investors and enable the company to adequately protect the investments it had made in its effort to provide quality service to consumers.
He noted that the tariff increase, if granted, would result in a rate increase of 16.8 per cent for residential customers and 15.8 per cent for small commercial customers. Additionally, Mr. Grant said that large commercial customers would pay a 17 per cent increase while large industrial customers would see a 12 per cent increase.
In his remarks, J. Paul Morgan, Director General of the OUR, said the consultations were of critical importance, as the input from the public had to be taken into consideration in order to make an objective ruling on the matter.
He noted that the OUR was encouraged by the response from the public at the meetings, and gave the assurance that every effort would be made to arrive at the best decision in the circumstances.
Emphasising that the cost of the service provided by the JPSCo was not very high when compared to the cost of similar services provided by its counterpart in several other countries in the region, he said the increase being applied for was intended to strike a balance between the company’s interest and the interest of the consumer.

Last Updated: April 1, 2004

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