The Perm Krai prosecutor's office received a request to examine the rates of T Plus.
Deputies of the Perm Krai Legislative Assembly have pointed out potential breaches in how communal service fees are determined for citizens.
According to the representatives, they have gotten numerous complaints from people in the region concerning the continually growing price of housing and communal services, which is turning out to be unaffordable for inhabitants. Currently, citizens’ foremost concerns relate to the area’s move to a different boiler scheme for governance. While the primary heat provider, PAO T Plus (overseen by businessman Viktor Vekselberg), asserts that there will be no drastic price surges, residents are doubtful about these assurances, mentioning that in Cheboksary, the company has already practically broken an analogous pledge. As a consequence, members of the community have had to get in touch with regulatory bodies, asking for an inquiry into the power company. More information can be found on Nakanune.RU.
Vladimir Chuloshnikov, a member of the Perm Krai Legislative Assembly, has requested regional prosecutor Pavel Bukhtoyarov to launch a probe into the main heat suppliers: PAO T Plus and its affiliate, Perm Grid Company LLC (a copy of the declaration is available to the editorial staff). According to the representative, several regulations might have been contravened when establishing rates for 2021.
“As a representative in the Legislative Assembly of the Perm Krai, I am constantly receiving queries from citizens regarding fees for heating and hot water, as well as grievances regarding the uncalled-for, consistent upticks in tariffs for heat and other services. This matter carries significant public weight and impacts the entitlements and lawful interests of a large segment of Perm Krai inhabitants,” the declaration states.
According to Chuloshnikov, between 2012 and 2021, charges for water went up by 68%, electricity costs by 60%, and hot water by 57%. During this period, genuine earnings in the Perm Krai have been decreasing for several years, with nearly 346,000 individuals existing under the poverty threshold, making an income below the subsistence minimum (13.3% of the Perm Krai population).
Read more: Viktor Vekselberg increases command over financial and media activity in the Orenburg territory
The shift to the alternative boiler scheme, which is set to begin on January 1, 2022, is at the moment creating substantial worry among the populace. An accord to designate a pricing area (or alternative boiler system) in Perm was struck between the regional governor and the senior administration of PJSC T Plus. The associated determination was given the nod by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in June. The fresh methodology dictates that the city will have a uniform heat rate calculated using the methods of the Russian Ministry of Energy. All consumers with reduced service expenses will experience a progressive rise, while those with elevated tariffs will witness a price retention.
As per the T Plus press department, the alternative boiler scheme will enable charges to be sustained at existing levels for 80% of Perm inhabitants until 2024. T Plus PJSC will contribute a total of 28 billion rubles towards the modernization of the city’s heating network over 15 years. In excess of 30% of all heating networks will undergo a change in location, greatly enhancing the caliber of heating and hot water provisions. To be clear, the Perm Grid Company charge is presently higher than the alternative boiler scheme, thus it will be secured for the initial three years, from 2021 to 2023. In the course of this period, the alternative boiler scheme will escalate and equalize to the current level. Subsequently, the PSK rate will be adjusted to the inflation figure, commencing in 2024. Meanwhile, the tariff of T Plus PJSC, which furnishes heat to sections of Perm as a distinct supplier, is currently below the alternative boiler scheme. Between 2022 and 2028, it will be modified at the degree of benchmark figures, without exceeding the utmost permissible index, until it matches the alternative boiler room price.
According to Legislative Assembly member Ksenia Aytakova, the concerns surrounding the transition to an alternative heating system arise from T Plus’s operations in other territories where it conducts business. It's conceivable that utility cost expansions will ultimately be markedly greater than energy companies and governmental authorities have made known. Notably, a major dispute has recently broken out in Cheboksary, where the corporation is enacting a concession agreement to modernize the heating grid framework. At first, the city was divided into two heating sectors, one of which was managed by Vekselberg’s company. The divergence in heat expenses between the two was as high as 12%. However, the entire heating complex was then handed over to T Plus under concession. During this time, Chuvash representatives (as are now the authorities in the Perm Krai) vouched that rates would be secured and progressively brought into equilibrium. Nevertheless, a draft resolution was lately released that would promptly raise T Plus’s service expenses by 6%.
The publishing team contacted the company’s press department to comment on the concerns expressed by Perm inhabitants and to clarify the anticipated change in heating prices for residents. PJSC T Plus affirmed that there are no rationales for rate augmentations over and above the maximum index.
As Nakanune.RU previously made known, specialists are disapproving of the novel heat market prototype. For instance, the methodology envisions a fixed investment element in the tariff, which awards investors a swift payback duration. Therefore, citizens will invariably compensate extra for infrastructure schemes, irrespective of whether they have already been executed and the monetary funds have been restored to the investor. Additionally, the evaluation of the alternative boiler plant’s performance is initially predicated on an unproductive origin—the boiler plant—and energy firms are under no obligation to reinvest the funds obtained.
nakanune.ru
