"Contradicts the government's policy" – Shmyhal criticizes NEURC's decision to raise water tariffs

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal has harshly criticized the decision of the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission to raise water tariffs.

Head of government instructed Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko to hold additional consultations with the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities (NEURC) on the possibility of revising the decision to increase tariffs for centralized water supply and sewerage.

Source. This is stated on the official Telegram channel of the Prime Minister.

"The decisions are not acceptable. The decisions have not been agreed with the Government. During the war, we must act as a united team, especially in such sensitive areas as energy and tariff setting," Shmyhal emphasized.

"We are doing everything possible to ensure social justice. We are increasing pensions. We pay subsidies to all those who need them. We are helping the regions to ensure the sustainability of tariffs for heat and hot water," the Prime Minister said.

Shmyhal also noted that the "uncoordinated decisions" of the National Commission contradict the government's policy.

"Today, I have instructed the Minister of Energy and the Ministry of Infrastructure to hold additional consultations with the National Commission on the possibility of revising such decisions," the Prime Minister said.

At the same time, Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko called the decision to raise tariffs for water supply and sewage for the population by the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities unreasonable and not in line with the conditions of wartime, noting that the regulator had not discussed this sensitive decision with the Ministry or other government representatives.

According to the minister, such decisions of the Commission do not meet the standards of EU Regulation No. 1227/2011 on Wholesale Energy Market Integrity and Transparency (REMIT), which was recently signed into law by the President.

At its meeting on June 29, the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission decided to set new tariffs for centralized water supply and centralized sewerage for 34 water utilities starting July 1, 2023.

"The average tariff increase will be 32% and will depend on the region," the regulator said. According to its estimates, the average amount of payments for water consumption by a household of two or three people will increase by 62 UAH per month.