By Admin. Updated 9:49 p.m., Monday, July 29, 2024, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).
The St Vincent Electricity Services Limited (VINLEC) announced Monday that electricity billing for July 2024 will be estimated.
In a press release, the State-owned sole commercial supplier of electricity in the country said the move is due to the challenges posed by Hurricane Beryl,
It said the fuel surcharge rate for July is 64.51 cents.
In the July 29 press release, VINLEC said: “Hurricane Beryl has caused significant disruptions, preventing the reading of all electricity
meters. Therefore, we have had to estimate the bills for most customers this month,” the company said.
“However, we assure all our valued customers that all reasonable efforts will be made to reconcile any
discrepancies between estimated and actual usage in bills issued for the month of August,” the company added.
The company said: Customers in the Southern Grenadines—Canouan, Mayreau, and Union Island—who have received a bill for July 2024 should note that these charges will be waived due to the hurricane’s impact.
“VINLEC appreciates your understanding and cooperation during this challenging time
and remains dedicated to fully restoring our services,” VINLEC said.
The Fuel Surcharge Rate
Some 80 percent of the country’s electricity production comes from the burning of fossil fuels. This means that VINLEC has to purchase fuel (mainly diesel) from overseas in order to produce most of the electricity. This is where the fuel surcharge rate comes from – the money the company spends to purchase fuel is passed on to each consumer in addition to the base rate.
The country also has a few Hydropower plants which account for about 15-18 percent of electricity production, annually, and solar farms.
Click here to see the Energy Unit’s data on fuel production in previous years.
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