Next year, most likely, the residents of Kolasin will pay almost twice as much for water compared to the current prices, that is, almost 83 cents per cubic meter.
The fixed part of the service price on a monthly basis will be, as proposed, 2,04 euros.
The Regulatory Agency for Energy and Regulated Utilities (Agency) approved the proposal of the company Vodovod i Kanalizaje for the prices of services for public water supply and the acceptance and disposal of municipal wastewater, and that document is currently under public discussion. In accordance with the law, water prices for legal entities and individuals will be equalized.
However, despite the significant price increase, as they said in the Kolašin company, water prices will be and continue to be among the lowest in the country. They explain that, for those who do not have water meters, the water consumed will be calculated at a flat rate of five cubic meters per month per user. The company reminds that the price of water is determined on the basis of several parameters, as required by the Methodology for determining prices for the performance of regulated utility activities.
"On the basis of the Methodology for determining the prices of services, according to which the Agency approves the prices, the price of the services is determined, to which the Founder (Municipal Assembly) should give final approval. A number of external factors, which cannot be influenced by water companies, affect the prices of services. One of the factors is the adoption of the Branch Collective Agreement (GKU) for residential and communal services, which will affect the price of services. I must emphasize that the basic salary coefficient has increased by an average of 70 percent since November 2023," the Director of Water Supply and Sewerage told "Vijesti" Milos Pekovic.
In addition to GKU, he explains, the company was faced with a 35 percent reduction in prices for "legal entities", and all of this, he claims, has made business more difficult in the current year. He reminds that "the problem with service prices is evident throughout Montenegro".
"Every water company is in trouble because of such a way of determining prices, but they received the aforementioned authority with the consent of the Government five years ago. The European practice, on the basis of which the Agency's Methodology is based, will be reflected in the equalization of prices for legal and natural persons. This practice will have a negative impact on natural persons, while it will not affect legal entities. Water companies are powerless to influence all that, because they are obliged to comply with the Laws that follow the adoption of prices", says the director.
The total number of users of the Kolašin water supply system is 2.390, and the planned quantity of delivered water next year is 403.355 cubic meters.
The agency also approved the proposed price list for the acceptance and disposal of municipal wastewater for the next year, according to which the fixed part of the price on a monthly level will be around 1,24 euros, and the variable part of the price will be almost 50 cents per cubic meter. The total number of users connected to the sewage system in Kolašin is 566, and the amount of collected waste next year is planned at 92.542 cubic meters.
Losses on the Kolašin water network are about 70 percent, he said at the end of last year for "Vijesti" Peković. He clarified that this is the amount of spilled or consumed water, which cannot be charged by the company. According to Peković, "there are several reasons for such a high percentage of non-revenue water". He explained that reducing losses on the network is a problem that cannot be solved in a short period of time, but, he claims, requires a detailed analysis of the network and continuity. A large number of Kolašin's water pipelines are over 40 years old, and one is even 90 years old, which causes daily failures in the primary, secondary and tertiary water supply.
One of the reasons for huge losses is irrational consumption, a large number of consumers do not have installed water meters, which is why a huge amount of water is spilled and consumed without control. There is also a large number of illegal connections, excessive water consumption that is not invoiced but calculated flat-rate, Peković said earlier.
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