Government has announced a three-month extension of its Electricity Assistance Programme (EAP) until December.
The programme aims to help residents manage the current period of unusually high fuel costs by capping electricity charges for consumers at $0.15 per kWh.
The initial scheme ran for three months from July until September.
Government will contribute up to $0.05 per kWh for eligible residential customers who have a monthly energy consumption between 101 and 2,000 kWh.
Any fuel factor costs exceeding $0.20 per kWh will be covered by CUC’s Fuel Factor Relief programme that runs concurrently with government’s EAP until the end of the year.
Unlike the government scheme, CUC’s new initiative is also available to commercial customers and applicable to all levels of consumption.
The cap of $0.20 per kWh includes all line items that make up the fuel factor, including fuel cost, fuel duty and the renewable energy charge.
However, CUC will recover the cost of its fuel relief programme over a one-year period starting in 2023.
In a press release, CUC said the fuel costs for electricity consumption in October have been the highest so far for the year but they are expected to decrease from November.
The utility’s fuel cost to generate electricity has almost doubled from $0.128 per kWh in January to $0.236 in October.
Government’s assistance scheme can save households up to $100 on their monthly energy bills depending on the level of consumption.
Premier Wayne Panton said government will prepare for further price increases and help families reduce one of the biggest household expense items.
“Around the world, the soaring cost of living is being driven in part by the cost of fuel, and the resulting cost of energy.”
The direct subsidy “will help blunt the impact of the sharp increases in utility bills, providing much-needed relief for those who need it,” Panton said.
Although fuel costs are expected to plateau in the coming winter months, fuel costs remain relatively high when compared to a year ago, he added. “This means that even though consumption should be going down because it is cooler, bills may remain relatively high for most households.”
Between July and September, 22,000 households across Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman accessed the government’s EAP. This represented about 80% of residential customers, who saved on average $66.20 on their monthly utility bills.
CUC said the cost savings from the two schemes will vary based on consumption.
“CUC is committed to providing ongoing support to its customers through these difficult times and it was important that we seek approval from OfReg to provide fuel factor relief at this time,” CUC president and CEO Richard Hew said.
“This will ease the burden on residents and businesses at a time when they need it most. Global events continue to negatively impact local businesses and the cost of living, not only in the Cayman Islands but around the world. As a company we are committed to doing what we can to assist our customers during these tough times while at the same time taking steps to remain a reliable and financially viable operation,” he added.
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