Straits Times 18 Oct 08;
SINGAPORE Power (SP) said it does not keep any of the tariff increase that has been levied on users.
All of the extra cost goes into paying for the higher cost of fuel, said SP, the sole supplier of power to households and the majority of businesses here.
SP has come under fire since electricity prices began to rise this year.
Blog posts such as that on Tomorrow.sg and on online forums said electricity tariff increases should be absorbed by SP, considering that it posted over $1 billion in profits last year.
Responding to queries from The Straits Times, SP said it does not profit from supplying power to households and businesses.
The charges are set by the Energy Market Authority (EMA) for its services, although SP is allowed to recover the cost through a fee that is regulated by EMA.
SP's online annual report indicated that its profits had come mainly through the sale of assets in South Korea, Taiwan and new acquisitions in Australia.
'SP has to earn a reasonable return so that it can finance the investments in its grid infrastructure needed for replacement, as well as for meeting new demand,' an SP spokesman said.
For example, he said, SP would need to invest about $5 billion in the electricity grid infrastructure over the next five years.
SHOBANA KESAVA
