Kicillof's government approved an extraordinary increase in electricity prices
Axel Kicillof together with Carlos Bianco, his chief of staff
porEditorial Team
Argentina
The average increase will be 12%, but those who lose subsidies will face increases of up to 17% starting in March
The government of the Province of Buenos Aires has made official a new increase in electricity rates that will begin to apply from March 1 and will have a full impact on the bills that will arrive in April and May. The measure was formalized through Resolution 102/26 of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Services and covers all areas under concession to EDELAP, EDEA, EDEN, and EDES, in addition to electric cooperatives in the interior of Buenos Aires Province.
According to official sources, the average impact on residential bills will be 12%. However, for users who lose energy subsidies, the increase will reach approximately 17%.
Axel Kicillof, gobernador de la provincia.
In concrete terms: a user without subsidies and with average consumption will go from paying around $46,100 to about $52,000. In contrast, a user with subsidies who was paying $28,500 will now pay close to $33,300. The difference is not minor and will be strongly felt in a context of high electricity demand and pressure on household income.
From the ministry headed by Gabriel Katopodis, they explained that the increase responds to several factors. On one hand, the wholesale prices of energy defined by the national government were updated. On the other hand, the Province adjusted the Distribution Value Added (VAD), one of the key components of the final rate.
To this is added the new scheme of targeted energy subsidies that replaces the previous segmentation system. From now on, users will be categorized simply as "with subsidies" or "without subsidies", which implies a more direct cut in state assistance for certain households.
While wholesale costs take effect immediately, the new VAD will begin to be applied from March. In practice, the consumption of February and March will already reflect these increases in the upcoming bills.
After several months of more moderate adjustments — in February the increase had been just 3.5% month-on-month — the current hike marks a considerable jump. In the middle of the hot season and with recent precedents of outages in AMBA due to demand peaks, electricity is once again becoming a sensitive front for the finances of residents of Buenos Aires Province.
