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Transparent tariff formation and the activities of the national regulator which sets them is an obvious necessity for the country, the Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (ULIE) said while commenting on the approval of the first reading of the bill on access to information on the supply of electricity, natural gas, heat, hot water, drinking water and water drainage.
"It is very important to establish transparent relations between the government and citizens. People have to know what they are paying for and whether these funds are spent on the modernization of enterprises, replacement of old energy consuming communications, etc. as this is declared," ULIE President Anatoliy Kinakh said.
The latter issue is the most important in this context – while establishing economically justified tariffs on electricity, water, and heating the government has to take care of utilities modernization, otherwise consumers' bills will keep growing.
Equipment wear and tear and extremely energy-consuming infrastructure do not contribute to the establishment of a price-quality balance and are burdensome for the country and each Ukrainian citizen. The ULIE president said that this sphere as well as others needs a step by step approach, including the adoption and implementation of state programs on energy efficiency and utilities modernization, drawing investments in the sphere, improvement of administration mechanisms, replacement of pipelines, boiler rooms, vehicles and other equipment.
According to Kinakh, today the tariffs are too high for many citizens, taking into account low wages and a general decline in the population's ability to pay. In this case the subsidies proposed to Ukrainian families by the government are not a panacea, but a temporary measure, as they are forcing an extra load on the national budget and in fact 'conserving' the low level of life and incomes of the population. For this reason, living standards and the paying capacity of the population should be improved and a negative impact of the crisis on an average Ukrainian's pocket should be reduced – these are the ways that could help to recover from the crisis if the economy works stably.
Kinakh also said that despite its advantages the proposed bill discloses information in this sphere not in full.
"The document does not foresee the disclosure of data on the country's gas output and turnover. In addition, there should be envisaged a mechanism for the use of this knowledge – how to protect your rights, respond to violations, etc," the ULIE President said.
The issues related to energy efficiency, modernization of technical equipment at enterprises, and upgrade of the infrastructure are widely considered by the Anti-Crisis Council of Non-Governmental Organizations of Ukraine and have been mentioned in the Anti-Crisis Program of Joint Actions of the Government and Businesses. The program is open for public discussion and has been sent to the country's leadership.