Telecom operators warn of the risk of tariff growth due to rising electricity prices

The largest telecom operators complained to the head of the Ministry of Digital Development, Maksut Shadayev, about the sharp increase in the cost of connecting communication equipment to the power grid, warning of an increase in tariffs for subscribers and a slowdown in the construction of networks. In their letter, they ask to revise the connection tariffs, writes RBC.

In a document sent by the heads of VimpelCom, Megafon, Beeline, MTS, as well as the groups of companies “Service-Telecom” and “New towers”, the increase in costs is explained by the abolition by the government in the summer of 2022 of the preferential rate in the amount of 550 rubles. for the connection of objects with a capacity of up to 15 kW (within which all sites of base stations are built).

As a result, from July 1 last year, operators began to pay 3,000 rubles. for each kilowatt after 550 rubles. for all 15 kW. From July this year, expenses will increase to 4,000 rubles. per kilowatt, and from 2024 – up to 5000 rubles. Tariffs also began to include an investment component to cover the costs of construction of power grid facilities. All this led to a rise in the cost of connecting base stations at times. Connecting households to the Internet has risen in price by a factor of 100 (up to 50,000 – 60,000 rubles) due to the fact that network organizations have begun to apply standard regional rates, the letter says.

“In a situation of increased sanctions and inflationary costs, such a decision has an extremely negative impact on the economy of telecom operators and significantly reduces the potential for the development of communication networks in the country,” MegaFon commented on the situation.

The CEO of the New Towers group, Yevgeny Chermashentsev, called the state of affairs “absurd”, pointing out that the FAS does not allow, on the one hand, to raise tariffs, but on the other hand, the state and state-owned companies themselves raise rates for services for the communications sector.

In their letter to Shadayev, the operators ask to work with other departments on the possibility of revising the conditions for connecting communication facilities to the power grid and returning the previous standards.

How wrote earlier than Vedomosti, the average cost of communication tariffs for the largest mobile operators will increase in 2023 by 10-15%. These figures from the forecast of the Telecom Daily agency were then confirmed by the experts of the Finam investment holding and the analytical agency TMT Consulting. The increase in prices will be associated primarily with the need to purchase sanctioned equipment, which has risen in price due to the suspension of supplies from major international vendors.