The Energy Regulatory Agency (RAE) will decide within two days whether to allow the Electric Power Company of Montenegro (EPCG) to increase the price of electricity, and if that happens, the unions will call employees and citizens for a general strike.
At the session of the Social Council where the story about the announced increase in electricity prices continued, EPCG representatives reiterated the reasons why they believe that the price increase should occur. The Minister of Labor and Social Welfare and the President of the Social Council, Suad Numanović, once again appealed to the management of EPCG to notify its Board of Directors "which also includes representatives of the Government" before submitting similar requests to the competent agency.
The Union of Free Trade Unions (USS) and the Union of Trade Unions (SSCG) announced that, if similar attacks on the pockets of already poor workers and citizens continue, they will no longer hesitate to organize strikes and thus express their disapproval of such social policy and treatment workers.
"Electricity is still too expensive and we will no longer have patience or regard for the situation in the country. If necessary, we are ready for civil disobedience and a general strike, because the membership demands that from us," said the Secretary General of the USSR Zoran Masoničić and added that about he has been seriously discussing this topic for a long time within the SSCG.
Masoničić said that analyzes of the USSR show that electricity prices in Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Bulgaria and Serbia are lower compared to Montenegro, while in Croatia, Greece and Slovenia they are slightly higher. Also, as he said, the monopolistic position of a company like EPCG must not be reflected on the entire population.
USS General Secretary Srđa Keković said that EPCG's behavior risks a general boycott of bill payments and that their request is unconstitutional and illegal.
"I guarantee you that we will raise the issue of a strike with all partners, the SSCG and the non-governmental sector," said Keković and added that the only question is how much the workers' response will be.
"I think that any increase in electricity at this moment could cause a certain reaction," he said.
USS, as he said, asked RAE not to adopt the request of EPCG and not to approve the electricity increase, and not to apply the Rulebook on Tariffs for Electricity until the process of evaluating its constitutionality and legality is completed before the Constitutional Court.
"We will have a firm position regarding all the expenses that EPCG has issued and they will have to act accordingly. EPCG had the right to issue such a request and some of the expenses are justified, but a huge part is not and they are aware that the whole public shares that opinion." , said RAE representative Pero Vucković.
Numanović also said that EPCG should take into account the standard and payment capacity of citizens who are their consumers, especially because they are already having a hard time paying their current bills, before making a final decision on a possible increase in electricity prices.
"When deciding on the price of electricity, RAE should take into account that EPCG was operating positively, that a significant part of the electricity was exported and that they reduced network losses by four percent," said Numanović.
He said that since the price of oil derivatives is an important input in the formation of the prices of other products and services, further increases "will inevitably be reflected in the direct increase in business costs, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, and in the standard and purchasing power of citizens."
The representative of Jugopetrol said that they do not decisively affect the price of fuel, which depends on four factors.
"It depends on the price of oil in the world, the relationship between the euro and the US dollar, and these are "imported" elements, from excise duties and taxes, and it can only affect the 10-11 cents of trade margins at the level of Montenegro," Jugopetrol representatives announced.
The Vice President of the Union of Employers, Budimir Raičković, said that the price of electricity should not be changed because there is no reason to do so.
- Any increase in energy prices at this moment would directly threaten the business of small and medium-sized enterprises and cause a chain of price increases for all products and services. An increase in electricity prices for households would cause a necessary increase in wages, which is not possible at the moment, except through a reduction in the number of employees - he said.
RAE: Turn the story into cost reduction
The Board of the Energy Regulatory Agency told the representatives of Elektroprivreda not to confuse the public with comments about the work of RAE, but to focus on their work.
The regulator recommends that EPCG fight for the views of the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Srđan Kovačević, regarding the reduction of losses, the increase in the level of collection of invoiced energy and lower rates of return on funds to be accepted in the company.
"This will make EPCG's request for approval of income for this year, from 342 million euros, on that basis alone, very easily reduce by more than 70 million euros," they specified with RAE.
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