Posted: December 11, 2015. 8:13 p.m. CST.
By Aaron Humes: Earlier this year the mean electricity rate for Belize was at its lowest point in recent memory at just 35 cents per kilowatt-hour. But rates could be on their way back up if Belize Electricity Limited (BEL) is successful with a submission to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) which it made on Thursday.
BEL is asking for an eleven per cent increase in rates, representing nearly four cents per kilowatt-hour from 35 to 
just under 39 cents.
This proposed “amendment”, the company says, reflects the actual cost of power for the 2012 – 2016 Full Tariff Review Period (FTRP).
BEL says it underestimated the Cost of Power (COP) impact of its Gas Turbine on the George Price Highway, and overestimated the impact from lower rates provided by Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE). It now seeks to recover these variances, ensuring that all updates are made to the parameters used to calculate electricity rates during the current full tariff period, to avoid a carry-over of these variances into the next Full Tariff Review Period.