No 'hidden' power tariff hikes, says Sabah Energy Commission
KOTA KINABALU: There are no hidden increases in electricity charges in Sabah, says the Energy Commission of Sabah (ECoS).
In a statement on Tuesday (June 24), ECoS stressed that the tariff structure and rates have not been revised since the last revision in 2014.
It also said the tariff structure and rate schedule for Sabah and Labuan, effective since Jan 1, 2014, can be obtained from Sabah Electricity's website.
Its statement came after Parti Warisan's Kota Kinabalu division information chief Samuel Wong claimed that there were hidden increases in electricity tariffs through the tiered rate structure.
'Consumers are assured that they will only be charged the rate of 47 sen per kilowatt-hour for consumption above 1,000 units, meaning monthly bills above RM383. This has been in effect since Jan 1, 2014,' ECoS said.
ALSO READ: Warisan urges explanation of 'hidden' tariff hikes in Sabah
It said that Wong or any concerned citizen may present any unusual bills that do not follow gazetted tariff blocks and rates to ECoS for investigation.
'If there is any error or negligence on the part of Sabah Electricity, ECoS will investigate and rectify accordingly.
'In the interests of transparency and accountability, ECoS encourages the public to use its official complaints and clarification platform, Talk2ECoS, especially in cases where consumers are unable to receive adequate responses from licensees such as Sabah Electricity,' it added.
ECoS said it was committed to safeguarding consumer rights and ensuring fair electricity pricing, while continuing to support efforts that strengthen the reliability and sustainability of Sabah's power supply.
Earlier, Wong called on the government to address what he claimed were hidden tariff hikes in Sabah through a quietly restructured tiered billing system.
He said that although the state recently announced a six-month waiver of the electricity surcharge under the Imbalance Cost Pass-Through (ICPT) mechanism, Sabahans were still experiencing rising bills because of a more complicated and punishing tier structure.
He said while the government said there was no surcharge, consumer bills told a different story via subtle changes to how electricity usage was charged, calling it a disguised price hike.
Wong said that in 2022, there were five usage tiers ranging from RM0.175 to RM0.450 per 100 units but by this year, the structure expanded to seven tiers, with a new highest rate of RM0.470 per 100 units.
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