Kuzbass weighed kilowatt-hours – Newspaper Kommersant No. 225 (7426) of 12/05/2022
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As Kommersant found out, the Kemerovo region unexpectedly became the only region that switched to a new mechanism for calculating electricity tariffs for the population, depending on consumption volumes. The authorities of the Irkutsk region, which initially lobbied for this measure to combat gray mining of cryptocurrency, eventually abandoned the idea. According to analysts, the mechanism has not become widespread due to political risks and unobvious economic benefits.
In the Kemerovo region, from December 1, a new calculation of the electricity tariff for the population was introduced: now the price of a kilowatt-hour there depends on the volume of consumption. The basic volume of household consumption is 400 kWh per month, within which the one-part tariff for rural residents and urban residents with electric stoves will be 3.01 rubles. for 1 kWh, and for citizens with gas stoves – 4.31 rubles. Tariffs in the consumption range of 400–650 kWh will rise to 4.95 rubles. and 7.07 rubles. respectively, and when consuming more than 650 kWh – up to 6.07 rubles. and 8.68 rubles. During the heating season, for households with electric heating, the ranges are higher: basic – up to 1.2 thousand kWh, average – up to 1.8 thousand kWh. Preferential categories of citizens consume an unlimited amount of electricity at a low tariff.
In Russia, electricity tariffs are regulated by the state and historically below the economically justified level, these costs are included in the cost of electricity for industry (cross-subsidization). In 2021, the volume of cross-subsidizing is 241 billion rubles.
The regions received the right to introduce differentiation of electricity tariffs for the population depending on consumption volumes at the end of last year (see “Kommersant” dated December 22, 2021). Initially, the introduction of the mechanism was lobbied by the authorities of the Irkutsk region, faced with the rapid development of cryptocurrency mining farms that buy electricity at low household tariffs. Later, Khakassia joined the Irkutsk region: in the summer, the commission on tariffs of the republic told Interfax that they planned to introduce a mechanism, although the governor of the region did not make a decision.
Igor KobzevGovernor of the Irkutsk region, January 13:
“Mining is a good economic activity… We have our own TASED zones… We are ready to provide sites, carry out all permitting procedures for the power transmission line.”
However, neither Irkutsk Oblast nor Khakassia has introduced tariff differentiation, it follows from the published decisions of local tariff authorities. In the Irkutsk region, from December 1, the one-part tariff in the city is 1.43 rubles. for 1 kWh, in the countryside – 0.994 rubles. (growth by 9%). In Khakassia, a new tariff for citizens is 2.67 rubles. (growth by 9%), for residents of the village and townspeople with electric stoves – 1.87 rubles. (growth by 5.8%).
Other regions also did not change the calculation of tariffs, Kommersant’s sources in the industry say. Tariff differentiation has been operating in Crimea for a long time (the base range is 150 kWh per month, and for citizens with electric heating it is 250 kWh and 3,000 kWh during the heating season). In six regions that switched to tariff formation under the social norm mechanism in 2013 (the standard is calculated per person depending on housing parameters), including the Rostov, Vladimir and Nizhny Novgorod regions, there were also no changes.
The FAS told Kommersant that they had begun analyzing information from regional tariff authorities, including the Kemerovo region. “After studying all the materials and the first results, it is possible to adjust the parameters,” they say.
Sergey Sasim from the HSE Institute for Economics and Regulation of Infrastructure Industries believes that the likely reason for the lack of demand for the mechanism is a combination of obvious political risks and unobvious economic benefits.
“The refusal of the Irkutsk region from the mechanism, in fact, is a demonstration of the distrust of the authors of the initiative in the effectiveness of its practical implementation,” the expert notes. Mr. Sasim emphasizes that the most effective way to solve the problem of gray mining in the Irkutsk region would be to eliminate cross-subsidization, but there are no significant actions in this direction. Moreover, as a result of the adopted tariff and balance decisions, cross-subsidization in the Irkutsk region will increase in 2023 by 34.5%, or almost 2 billion rubles, he calculated.
In the Kemerovo region, it will also not be possible to reduce cross-subsidization through tariff differentiation, Sergey Sasim continues. According to his estimates, cross-subsidization in 2023 there even increased by 6%, or by 504 million rubles. He also notes that the basic volume of electricity consumption in Kuzbass at first glance looks quite significant, but it is not tied to the social characteristics of the consumer and the composition of the household, so it is difficult to assess how much such a volume protects a conditional large family living in the same living space from a significant increase in the load. elderly parents. At the same time, the ranges of the cheapest consumption “do not look excessively high” in comparison with the regional utility consumption standards in 2022.
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