The Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission, (T&TEC) needs to reduce its overall costs by $2.2 billion.
That’s according to the chairman of Regulated Industries Commission, Dawn Callendar.
Callendar said the commission has asked T&TEC to slash its cost profile by $2.2 billion, saying the reduction of the cost profile from $29 million to $27 billion would be cause for unhappiness for TTEC.
“Now that they are hearing this information, they can sharpen their pencils, they can look at areas within the business where they want to introduce different methods of doing work, whether it is new technology and the like, but reduce the overall costs by $2.2 billion.”
Callendar made the comments during the first of the commission’s public consultations, a live media interview on Tuesday at 10.15 am on i95.5FM.
Concerning the public’s questions about the legality of the review, Callendar said there are two sections of the Regulated Industries Commission Act which could govern the review process, sections 48 and 49.
Section 48 says: “The commission shall review the principles for determining rates and charges for services every five years or, where the licence issued to the service provider prescribes otherwise, at such shorter interval as it may determine.
Section 49 (1) says: “Notwithstanding section 48, where it is the opinion of a service provider that there has been such a fundamental change in circumstances as to warrant a review of the principle for determining rates for the service which it provides, it may give written notice to the commission requesting a review of the principle except that it may not request a review more than once in any year.”
Callendar said the commission felt it had a responsibility to share with people how the new rates were arrived at, which is why it was having consultations across the length and breadth of TT.
She encouraged the public to come out to the consultations with their bills and data about their usage.
The proposed new rates could be found on the RIC’s website, www.ric.org.tt, and people could peruse the report thoroughly and send in comments and questions.
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