Energo- Having to Pay for Electricity of Others

Gela Mtivlishvili, Kakheti

On October 3 2008, Georgian National Commission of Energetic Regulation discussed the temporary rules for JSC Kakheti Energy Distribution Company to estimate the consumed electricity for individual electricity meters. Despite many protests by locals and the lack of  compliance with acting Georgian  legislation, the Commission has  allowed the distribution company to use communal meters up to June 1 2009.

The Georgian National Commission of Energy Regulation was established in 1996 for the purpose of protecting subscribers from monopoly pricing and this was suppose to  be based on international practice. However, according to the decision experts concluded that the commission breaches the rights of the subscribers.

Initially, on November 29 2005 the national commission allowed the Kakheti Energy Distribution Company to estimate the amount of used electricity according to the communal meters. The resolution was valid until July 1 2008 and it should have covered those subscribers who did not have individual meters in Kakheti region. However, the local distribution company demanded the entire population have to pay based on the figures from communal meters. Consequently, the population started protesting over the initiative. People paid the bills according to their individual meters and refused to pay the bills based on common meters. The distribution company used to cut off electricity supply to such categories of subscribers.

The JSC Kakheti Energy Distribution Company regulates the electrify supply to its subscribers based on communal meters under the regulation of the Georgian National Agency of Energy Regulation. This regulation was adopted for temporary activities until all subscribers have individual meters. This regulation was adopted according to the Article 5-paragraph I, Article 28 Paragraph I and Article 36 –paragraph III-f of the Georgian Law on Electro-Energy and Natural Gas. The regulation aimed to assist the privatization process implemented by the Kakheti Distribution Company,” stated Zurab Dighmelashvili, the bankrupt manager of the Kakheti Distribution Company.

Besides the fact that subscribers with individual meters should not pay bills based on the communal meters, this normative protocol estimates several other standards as well.

“If the subscriber petitions to the company to check his/her individual electricity meter the company should examine the meter within one week and draw up protocol where the meter should be described as valid or spoiled. Unless the company examines the meter and draws up the protocol within a week the meter is considered to be valid.”

Several subscribers applied to the company with similar request and submitted written petitions as well. However the Kakheti Energy Distribution Company did not follow its own set forth responsibilities. According to the regulation, a subscriber with valid individual meter should not have pay according to a communal metre.

According to the same rule, the company and subscribers without individual meters should draw up a protocol of comparison where the figure of the communal meter and other data should be demonstrated to be in order. Based on the data of the protocol the company is suppose to prepare the bill for each subscriber which will contain the information about the total amount of the electricity expense together with other data as well the address of the service center for subscribers’ complaints.

Article 8 of the temporary rule estimates that “if the subscriber does not pay the electricity bill the company is authorized to cut off his/her supply individually.” However, the Kakheti distribution company violates this demand alongside other rules. If one particular subscriber does not pay the bill all subscribers of one communal meter, have their electricity supply cut off. In recent times the company has started switching off the whole electricity transformer. Consequently, thousands of families remain without electricity and neighbors start to quarrel with each other. The problem gets particularly urgent during holidays or holiday-eves though the company is prohibited to cut off electricity in similar days.

According to the Article 10-paragraph II of the resolution # 18 dated by May 15 2006, subscriber shall pay 12.98 tetri for one kilowatt if s/he spends less than 100 kilowatts a month; if subscriber uses from 101 to 300 kilowatts a month s/he must pay 16.52 tetri; however, when the consumed electricity is more than 301 the subscriber is obligated to pay a rate of 17.49 tetri.

According to the rule the subscribers of the communal meters should pay according to the first rate (less than 100 kilowatts); however Kakheti Energy Distribution Company demands subscribers to pay bills according to the consumed electricity; that means the subscriber has to pay 17.49 tetri of s/he spends more than 301 kilowatts a month.

Georgian National Commission for Energy Regulation has information about the Kakheti Energy Distribution which breaches the legislation. Local NGOs have informed the National Commission several times about the violation and claimed that the company extorted money from local people; however, there was no result in this notification.

On October 3 2008 the National Commission discussed the temporary rule of the Kakheti Energy Distribution Company. Despite many protest of the local people and incompliance with the legislation the national commission allowed the regional company to use communal meters until June 1 2009.

Malkhaz Dzidzikashvili, Energy-Ombudsman, stated that the decision of the National Agency is illegal; however, now it is the only mechanism to calculate the used electricity.

Lia Khuroshvili, lawyer for the NGO Human Rights Center stated that “to demand subscriber to pay the bill according to the communal meter and this blatantly breaches to the human rights because in this situation a person is obliged to pay for other subscribers,” said the lawyer.
The regulation of the communal calculation contradicts the Georgian law about the rights of the subscribers. According to the Articles 2 and 6 of the law the subscriber has right to demand all information about the amount of the product. It is clear that in in this particular case subscribers are unable to enjoy this right.

The Energy Regulation National Commission defines that communal meters were installed only for transitive period because the company did not have its own resources to regulate the calculation process and energy network. “The situation was very complicated in the Georgian energy system and there was no other alternative. However, communal meters should not work for ever and they can be only temporary ones. Besides that the company should install individual meters within the terms estimated by the national commission,” stated the officials from the commission.

Kakheti Distribution Company cannot install individual meters yet and their excuse for the delay is the lack of financial resources. The company has been working in bankrupt regime since 2005. In 2006 the privatization process of the company started and 4 tenders and 1 auction were held though the company was not purchased. The monthly salary of the manager of the JSC Kakheti Energy Distribution Company is 18 thousand GEL though his company has declared bankrupt.