KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 — The Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) has advised the public to use goods or services sustainably to avoid wastage as the world is currently facing an energy crisis.
Its chief executive officer T. Saravanan said regulating electrical energy consumption can help sustain energy supply, thereby easing the burden on the government and utility companies to meet the growing demand.
This is due to the high costs involved in electricity supply such as fuel utilisation and the development of electrical supply infrastructure, he added.
“Every six months, the government will announce the Imbalance Cost Pass-Through (ICPT) rates and has maintained it at the same rate like the previous ICPT cycle for almost all low voltage domestic and non-domestic users as well as specific agricultural categories.
“Maintaining stable ICPT rates has a positive impact on consumers, especially since many of them were affected during the Covid-19 pandemic, which led to increased inflation,” he told Bernama recently.
In June, the government announced that households in Peninsular Malaysia using up to 1,500 kWh of electricity monthly would be exempted from tariff hikes. This decision was made as part of the adjustment in electricity rates from July 1 to Dec 31, 2023 under the ICPT mechanism implementation.
The government has also agreed to subsidise electricity costs under the ICPT for the same period, amounting to RM5.2 billion.
This means almost all low-voltage domestic and non-domestic users will not be affected by the latest electricity rate adjustments.
Meanwhile, high and medium voltage non-domestic users, as well as new categories of water utilities and sewage treatment, will benefit from reductions due to the slight decrease in the average price of coal from USD 224/metric tonne (July-December 2022) to USD 173.50/metric tonne (January-June 2023).
However, the average price of coal remains high and exceeds the estimated fuel cost set during the third regulatory period (RP3), which is USD 79/metric tonne.
This year, Malaysia’s population, estimated to reach 33.4 million, is expected to grow further and with the anticipated increase in electricity usage, Saravanan said efficient energy consumption is crucial as it can significantly reduce households’ monthly electricity bills.
Saravanan recommended domestic consumers invest in energy-efficient electrical appliances with a four or five-star Energy Efficiency Label, overseen by the Energy Commission. These appliances are eligible for rebates of up to RM400 under the Sustainability Achieved Via Energy Efficiency (SAVE) 3.0 programme.
Meanwhile, Pertubuhan Mesra Pengguna Malaysia deputy president Azlin Othman said lifestyle is one of the factors that significantly affect electricity consumption.
Monitoring and optimising electricity usage are appropriate steps in managing energy more efficiently for a sustainable future, in addition to using renewable energy sources such as solar power and others, she added.
Azlin suggested that the government implement short-term subsidy initiatives to enable electricity providers such as Tenaga Nasional Bhd to lower electricity costs, hence easing the financial burden on customers and end-users.
She also recommended the government implement an educational programme on consumerism starting from the primary school level and consumer clubs at schools to actively promote best practices in electricity usage.
— Bernama
