Power bills rise as temperatures soar

Soaring electricity bills for Cayman residents in July are the result of increased power usage, not rate increases, according to the Caribbean Utilities Company and the Electricity Regulatory Authority. 

Several householders contacted the Cayman Compass to say their bills had skyrocketed during July – some by as much as 50 percent. 

But CUC says the price of electricity to residential consumers has actually gone down and any increases are due to increased usage. 

Air conditioners are the most likely culprit, according to CUC corporate communications manager Pat Bynoe-Clarke. She said July was one of the hottest months recorded since the utility company began collecting temperature data. 

“This time of year consumption rises as most people are using their air conditioners more than they do during cooler times of the year, so most people do see higher bills during the summer months.  

“July was a very hot month and as a result many customers’ air conditioners have had to work harder to keep their premises cool.” 

The average temperature for July was 86 degrees Fahrenheit, compared with 84 for June. The 30-year average is 83.9 for July and 83.3 for June, according to data from the Cayman Islands Weather Service. 

Just those few degrees difference can have a dramatic impact on bills, according to the power company. 

Even if air conditioner usage does not change, bills can go up because the units need to use more power to maintain the same temperatures. 

“What the air conditioning unit is doing is extracting heat from the air. Every small increase in temperature means it has more heat to extract and that extra work requires more power/electrical energy consumption,” said Charles Farrington, managing director of the Electricity Regulatory Authority. 

He said his own bills had gone up by more than $100. 

“I monitor my electricity usage very closely and my bills went up as well.” 

Ms. Bynoe-Clarke said there had been a small increase in fuel prices – marginally over 1 percent – which also contributed to higher bills. 

She said there had been a 1 percent decrease in the price per kilowatt hour of electricity for residential customers which came into effect in June. 

A decrease in the duty on fuel, announced in government’s budget, does not kick in till next year. That cut is expected to lead to a reduction in bills of just over 4 percent.