The government has announced a rebate of 2 sen/kilowatt hour (kWh) for all Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) customers – including both domestic and non-domestic accountholders – starting from 1 January to 30 June 2021. On top of that, the average base tariff rate for electricity will also be maintained at 39.45 sen/kWh next year.

With regard to the 2 sen/kWh rebate, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said that 7.5 million domestic consumers will see a reduction of between 3.6% and 9.2% in their electricity bills. Similarly, commercial consumers can expect a discount of between 4% and 5.2%, and industrial users a reduction of between 4.6% and 6.1%.

“The rebate is due to Putrajaya’s decision to extend TNB’s Second Regulatory Period under the Incentive Based Regulation (IBR) mechanism until 31 December 2021,” said Shamsul Anuar at a press conference. He added that the government has also agreed to pass on the fuel cost savings to all TNB users following the drop in coal and gas prices in the second half of 2020. This is in line with the implementation of the Imbalance Cost Pass Through (ICPT) mechanism for the period from 1 January to 30 June 2021.

Briefly, the IBR mentioned by Shamsul Anuar is a framework that was introduced to improve transparency and accountability within TNB when calculating electricity rates. It also features the ICPT mechanism that allows adjustments to be made in consumers’ electricity bills every six months. The adjustments may include varying rates of a rebate or surcharge to reflect changes in prices of fuel for electricity generation.

“We hope that this rebate offer can help alleviate the cost of living of the people and reduce the cost to run businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Shamsul Anuar.

(Sources: The Sun Daily, Free Malaysia Today)

• TAGS:
• Covid-19
• Datuk Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah
• Electricity Bills
• Electricity Rebates
• Electricity Tariff
• Tenaga Nasional
• Tenaga Nasional Berhad
• TNB
• TNB Imbalance Cost Pass Through (ICPT)
• TNB Incentive Based Regulation (IBR)