Govt should engage with stakeholders first before electricity tariff adjustment, says FMM

PETALING JAYA: There should be more engagement and discussion between the government and stakeholders concerning the electricity tariff adjustments, says Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM).

Its president Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai expressed disappointment with the government’s decision to maintain the Imbalance Cost Pass Through (ICPT) surcharge for the first half of 2024, at 17 sen/kwh (kilowatts per hour).

“FMM had anticipated a reduction in ICPT surcharge following the overall declining trend in global fuel prices this year and the six-month lag.

“In particular, there is a drop in fuel prices from the previous ICPT and the current announcement, hence even a small reduction would still be welcomed by industries.

“FMM hopes that more details would be made available on the decision to maintain the surcharge at the current rate as the industry was not consulted prior to the announcement this time around,” he said in a statement on Saturday (Dec 23).

Soh added that consistent engagement with industry players could address concerns and challenges faced concerning the electricity tariff rate during the period of high ICPT surcharge rate.

Such engagement, he said, is especially important for the small and medium industries (SMIs) under the medium voltage (MV) category.

“In this regard, there should be a more robust customer profiling to review the eligibility of SMIs under MV category.

“This would enable them to qualify for a lower surcharge at 3.7 sen/kWh as industries in general including SMIs continue to operate under a challenging environment since uncertainties around economic growth and inflation outlook remain in 2024 amid concerns on the impact of subsidy rationalisation as well as the geopolitical risks,” he added.

Yesterday, the Energy Commission said the government agreed to revise electricity tariffs under the ICPT mechanism which entailed targeted subsidies for users in the Peninsular Malaysia, except for the Kulim Hi-Tech Park in Kedah.

Domestic users using 600 kilowatts per hour(kWh) and below, the 2 sen rebate per kWh remains. Those using between 600 kWh and 1,500 kWh will not be subjected to a surcharge.

For those using 1,500 kWh and more, the surcharge remains at 10 sen per kWh. For example, for 1,500 kWh, the electricity bill will amount to RM738.20.

For non-domestic users in the commercial and low voltage industrial, specific agriculture, water and sewerage categories, the surcharge remains at 3.70sen/kWh.

Apart from the categories above, non-domestic users will continue to be imposed a surcharge of 17 sen/kWh.