By Belize Live News Staff: Facebook has been full of the same complaint for two days now, and the numbers people are posting are hard to ignore. Some consumers say their electricity bills have tripled.
The charge at the centre of it is the Cost of Power Adjustment, or COPA, approved by the PUC at 1.5 cents per kilowatt hour for August.
The United Democratic Party wants it rolled back. In a release today, the party said households are already stretched by the cost of food, rent and transportation, and cannot absorb another increase. It also wants government to explain what close to $400 million invested in the energy sector has actually delivered for consumers.
Prime Minister John Briceño was asked about the complaints today and said he shares the concern, but does not accept that BEL is exploiting customers.
“No, it is not true,” he said, pointing instead to what he called 13 years of neglect under the previous administration and a lack of investment in transmission infrastructure.
He says Minister Michel Chebat will meet with BEL and the PUC, with a media briefing expected Monday or Tuesday.
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