KINGSTON, Jamaica – Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPS) customers will see an average 1.6 per cent increase in their electricity bills following the Office of Utilities Regulation’s (OUR’s) review of the 2023 JPS Annual Tariff Adjustment submission.

The OUR’s decisions became effective on August 9, 2023 and will be reflected in bills received for consumption following that date.

In its application to the OUR, JPS had requested, among other things an overall non-fuel tariff adjustment of 13.2 per cent, annual Revenue Target for 2023 of $55.1 billion, no adjustment to the 2023 Annual Revenue Cap’s Q-Factor, no Z-Factor adjustment in relation to its capital project transactions, and no Z-Factor adjustment on major projects, given this is the subject of a pending appeal by JPS.

“JPS had estimated that the proposed 13.2 per cent increase on non-fuel tariff would have a bill impact effect of approximately 0.8 per cent and 0.2 per cent increase for residential and RT40 customers, respectively, and a 2.5 per cent reduction in the average rates of commercial and industrial customers. However, the OUR’s analysis of JPS’s data suggests that the average overall increase for all customer categories would have been about 4.9 per cent,” the JPS said in a statement on Thursday.

The OUR approved 5.5 per cent increase on JPS’s 2022 approved Non-fuel Revenue Target. “This will result in an average bill increase of approximately 1.6 per cent. The associated changes to the non-fuel rate and charges by customer categories are shown in the Table below,” it added.

The OUR’s approved revenue target of $50.8 billion is $4.3 billion less than the $55.1 billion proposed by JPS.

The OUR approved non-fuel pre-paid rates for residential customers are $15.72/kWh for the first 117kWh within a 30-day consumption cycle, and $23.86/kWh for each additional kWh thereafter, within that 30-day consumption cycle.

The OUR also determined that it will retain the previously established heat rate target of 9,470 kj/kWh. JPS had proposed that the heat rate be maintained at the current level of 9,495 kj/kWh. The heat rate indicates the efficiency of JPS’s generation plants.

“JPS’s 2023 Annual Review application is in keeping with the provisions of the Electricity Licence, 2016, which allows for the realignment of the company’s revenue targets each year against inflation and foreign exchange rate movements, as well as its performance in the previous year. The Electricity Licence also provides for an Extraordinary Rate Review in the event of any exceptional circumstances that have a significant impact on the electricity sector and/or JPS that were not considered or known at the preceding five-year rate review,” the statement read.

The Annual Review application, submitted by JPS on 2023 May 8, is the third such application for rate adjustment following the 2019 to 2024 Rate Review under the revenue cap regime.

The JPS’s 2023 Annual Tariff Review Determination Notice can be found on OUR’s website.