Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - The government's decision to lift subsidies on residential electricity consumption will go into effect starting in 2014, a government official said.

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Malik Kabariti said during a press conference on Thursday that the 15 percent electricity price hike will only affect consumers whose monthly electricity consumption exceeds 601 kilowatts/hour.

The new electricity pricing will not affect residential consumers using less than 600 kilowatts/hour per month, with an average monthly bill of 50 JD and less, the Minister added.

The government's decision will also affect heavy industry sectors, commerce, banks, and government agencies, which will see a 15 percent increase on their electricity bills.

The decision however excludes the agriculture and light industry sectors that consume less than 10,000 kilowatts/hour per month, the Minister noted.

Kabariti stressed that the government understands the difficult economic conditions afflicting citizens, but emphasized that the decision to lift electricity subsidies cannot be delayed any longer.

The National Electric Power Company (NEPC) is expected to incur nearly JD 7.5 billion in losses by 2017, the Minister noted, adding that the new electricity prices will help in alleviating the company's losses.

Kabariti noted that NEPC incurred nearly JD 400 million in losses during the first five months of this year, expecting the total losses for 2013 to reach JD 3.47 billion.

The process of generating electricity costs the state budget JD 0.168 per kilowatt/hour, while being sold at an average of 84 fils per kilowatt/hour to consumers.

Regarding Egyptian supply of natural gas to the Kingdom, the Minister noted that Egypt supplies an average of 100 million square feet daily, but reached only 90 million square feet per day in the past four days.

The decision to lift electricity subsidies generated a row between parliament and the government, with a majority of members of parliament apposing the decision, citing increased financial burdens on citizens.