City’s ‘merciful’ tariff hikes

WINDHOEK residents will not have to bear the full brunt of the 20,7 per cent more NamPower has been charging the City of Windhoek for bulk electricity since yesterday, as the municipality will subsidise consumers and intends increasing its tariffs by only 16,7 per cent.

Passing the 2010-11 Windhoek Budget on Wednesday night, the City Council agreed to dip into the profits of its electricity department to cushion residents. As soon as the Electricity Control Board (ECB) approves the City’s application, electricity tariffs in the capital will go up by 16,7 per cent.The Council also approved a host of other tariff increases.The basic water tariff has been increased by eight per cent, as has the tariff for water consumption. Refuse removal, both for households and for informal settlements, is five per cent more expensive.The sewerage tariff is up by seven per cent, while the solid waste management tariff has been increased by five per cent.Property tax has been hiked by eight per cent.On average, this means that the municipal bill of a low-income household will increase by 12 per cent, while that of a middle-income household will go up by 11 per cent.High-income households will, on average, have to fork out 13 per cent more every month.However, the increase will depend on how much electricity households consume.The more electricity a household uses, the more it will be affected by the increases, regardless of income group.