Gas and electricity bills set to rise from October to December as tariffs increase

SINGAPORE - Gas and electricity prices will go up for the next three months due to higher fuel and energy costs.

The electricity tariff will go up by an average of 3.7 per cent, or 0.98 cent per kilowatt-hour (kWh), before goods and services tax, compared with the current quarter, said SP Group on Friday (Sept 29).

For households, between Oct 1 and Dec 31, the electricity tariff will increase from 27.74 cents per kWh in the current quarter to 28.7 cents per kWh, excluding the GST.

Including GST, the rate for the quarter is 31 cents per kWh.

The average monthly electricity bill for families living in four-room Housing Board flats will increase by $3.57 before GST, said SP Group.

This is due to higher energy costs compared with the previous quarter, the group added.

The electricity tariff is calculated from four components, including energy costs that reflect the cost of imported natural gas, and the cost of operating the power stations.

SP Group said it reviews electricity tariffs every quarter, based on guidelines set by the Energy Market Authority (EMA).

Meanwhile, the gas tariff for households will go up by 0.51 cent per kWh before GST, said City Energy, the producer and retailer of piped gas.

Excluding GST, the rate will increase from 21.91 cents per kWh to 22.42 cents per kWh for the period from Oct 1 to Dec 31.

With GST, the rate is 24.21 cents per kwh.

This is due to an increase in fuel costs compared with the previous quarter, said City Energy.

The revised gas tariffs have been approved by EMA, which also regulates the gas industry.

These increases follow a water price hike announced on Wednesday, which will see the price of water in Singapore rise by 50 cents per cubic m by April 2025, and amid rising living costs, an increase in GST this year and planned increase in transport fares.

On Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong announced a $1.1 billion Cost-of-Living Support Package to provide relief for all Singaporean households, with more support for lower- to middle-income families. They build on the measures announced at Budget 2023.

As part of the package, some 2.5 million adult Singaporeans will receive an additional cash payout of up to $200 in December, and every Singaporean household will receive an extra $200 in Community Development Council vouchers in 2024 to help with the rising cost of living.

Also, some 950,000 Singaporean HDB households will receive an additional one-off 0.5 month service and conservancy charges rebate in January 2024, together with the regular S&CC rebates.

There will also be additional subsidies of about $300 million in 2024 to cover the deferred fare adjustment quantum of 15.6 cent that will be carried over to future fare review exercises, as announced by the Public Transport Council on Sept 18.

The additional subsidies will help to moderate the increase in fares and pay for the higher costs of providing public transport services due to the continued increase in energy prices in 2022, core inflation and strong wage growth, the Ministry of Finance said previously.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.