ZESA promised a tariff increment and today they’ve delivered on that promise.
The new tariffs that domestic customers pay for power have been significantly increased;
There’ll be a fixed monthly charge of $6.08 and then the following charges depending on the KWh’s used:
- 1st 50 KWh – $0.41
- 51KWh – 200KWh – $0.91
- Balance – $3.87
ZESA made a video explaining how their new tariff system works
The tiered pricing system encourages consumers to use less electricity as you’ll be charged more as you break the 50KWh and 150KWh threshholds.
Consumers were currently paying around US2-3c/KWh but the new increment will see them pay around US12c which is aligned closely with pricing of electricity by our regional neighbours.
Institutions along with commercial and industrial players will be charged for energy depending on whether they are using power during Peak, standard or off-peak times
ZESA’s statement regarding the new tariffs noted that the pricing of tariffs will be subject to review on a monthly basis.
Update: We failed to mention that 200% in the title is dependant on how much electricity you buy.Apologies for that. In order to better illustrate the difference between pricing here’s an example below:
Buying 200KWh before cost:
i) for the first 50 – $0.06 * 50 = $3
ii) for the remaining 150 – 150 * $0.30 = $45
Total = $48
Now buying 200KWh will cost
i) First 50 – $0.41 * 50 = $20.5
ii) Remaining 150 – $0.91* 150 = $136
Total = $157
In this case, the percentage would actually be above 300%. We also realised that putting percentages on something this context-dependent is perhaps not the best way to go about it and we will do better next time.
Also read, The More ZESA You Use, The More You Pay- Here’s How It Works
What’s your take?