In 电费何时下调 (My Paper, 7 Oct 2008), 林顺华 asked when the
electricity tariff would be coming down, since the oil price has already fallen
below US$100 a barrel.
The electricity tariff
is updated every quarter based on the forward fuel oil price quoted three
months earlier. For example, the tariff
for October to December this year was based on the forward fuel price in July
of US$115 (S$155) a barrel.
The tariff would be
updated again for the quarter of January to March 2009, based on the forward
fuel oil price in October 2008. So if
the oil price continues to come down this month, Singaporeans can expect a
reduction in the tariff for the first quarter of 2009.
林顺华
also
asked how the Energy Market Authority (EMA) is looking after the interests of
consumers. In the long-term, the best
way to help consumers is to have an open and competitive electricity market.
This is why the EMA has focused on
liberalizing the electricity market to drive efficiency gains and ensure
competitive pricing of electricity.
We have already
liberalized the market for industrial users, and are now doing so for
households. In particular we have
developed the prototype Electricity Vending System (EVS), which allows
households to purchase electricity from competing providers and price
plans.
A trial run of the EVS
is being carried out in Marine Parade and West Coast, and if found viable, the
system will be implemented nationwide. This will allow more scope for product
innovation, better customer service and competitive pricing for the benefit of
all consumers.
