EWA dispatches new tariffs to consumers

As subsides for expatriates and businessmen are going to be lifted from March, Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) has sent the revised tariffs to the consumers. 

According the Ministry of Energy directives, the new tariffs will be applicable for all the expatriates, the Bahrainis with more than one household, big companies and the industrial sector from March 1. 

Small and Medium scale businesses, which are using up to 5000 units, will not be affected. They will continue to pay the price of 16 fils per unit.

A Bahraini head of the household with single account whose identity card address corresponds to the account registered for the electricity and water account will continue enjoying the current tariff. 

While a Bahraini citizen with more than one domestic account has been advised to select the account he wanted to use for the benefit of subsidies. He should also ensure that his personal address in the identity card responds to the selected address registered for the electricity and water account.

If someone has more than one wife, he can benefit from the subsidies provided the other account or accounts are registered in his wife’s/wives’ names at different addresses other than his own.

A Bahraini woman married to a non-Bahraini will enjoy the current tariffs only if the electricity and water account is registered in her own name. While the Bahraini minors, who have no guardians, will be bound to get the written approval of the Minor’s Estate Directorate if they want to get the current tariffs.

It is worth mentioning that one domestic account for each Bahraini citizen will be automatically entered in the Customer’s Services System for retaining the current electricity and water tariff where the address in the identity card corresponds to the registered account. 

Meanwhile, if the ID address does not correspond to that account or if a customer wants to retain the current tariff for a particular account, he is advised to contact the Information and eGovernment Authority for the change of address. 

For the change of addresses, Isa Town Customers’ Service Centre, Muharraq Customers’ Service Centre and Customers’ Services Centre Country Mall – Budaya Road can be contacted.

Reactions & apprehensions

Commenting on the new tariffs, Rana Shahid, a Pakistani businessman said that the small businessmen would definitely be affected. 

He said if the government increased the electricity and water prices without strengthening the economy of the country, it would weaken the economy more. 

Another expat businessman Shabbir Ahmed said that it was a wrong impression that the new bills would not affect the Bahraini citizens. He said that if the electricity bill for his business unit was increased, he would try to adjust it in the prices of the commodities and those prices would be same for the Bahraini and the expatriate. “So Bahrainis are going to be affected indirectly.”

He claimed that the business situation is getting worse and nobody was willing to start the new projects. 

Minister of Energy Dr. Abdulhussain Mirza had earlier said they had increased the prices in a gradual way so that the consumers might not feel the burden immediately and could find time to adjust to the new tariffs in the period of next four years. 

According to the new tariffs, electricity price will be increased to 29 fils /watt and water price to 750 fils/unit by 2019.  

As per the new rules, any Bahraini could be able to get subsidies only for one household.  Now the tariff for the first category (1 – 3000 units) is 3 fils / unit. But it will be 6 fils from March 1 this year, 13 fils next year and 21 fils in 2018 and it will be 29 fils in 2019.