The Ministry of Regional Development, the Federal Agency for Construction, Housing and Utilities (Gosstroy) and the Federal Tariff Service (FTS) are analysing materials to develop the principles and mechanisms for linking the growth of natural monopolies’ prices in the next five years staring in 2014 to the inflation rate in the preceding period. They are working in accordance with the President’s instruction issued during the St Petersburg International Economic Forum in June 2013.
Regional Development Minister Igor Slyunyayev has held a meeting to discuss the procedure which the Ministry and the FTS will use to coordinate and approve the consumers’ aggregate fee for the natural monopolies’ services over a long-term period, the monitoring of the sum of payment in the regulated period for the purpose of setting prices, as well as mechanisms for changing the planned prices if utility payments exceed the consumer price index in the preceding period.
Mr Slyunyayev has set the task of comprehensively monitoring consumers’ utility payments in order to make substantiated price decisions. He also ordered the Ministry to work jointly with the Federal State Statistics Service to change the reporting form for the regions by the end of this year. The new forms must include data required for the application of the new price regulation principles in the official information system of the housing and utilities sector starting in 2014.
It was also said at the meeting that the end price of the natural monopolies’ products and services must be adjusted to inflation with due account of the municipal authorities’ business plans for the development of utility infrastructure. The goal is to coordinate the price of utility services with their quality and availability.
To be able to do this, municipal authorities must first approve programmes of comprehensive development of their utility infrastructure (heat, gas, electricity and water supply/discharge), as well as energy efficiency and household waste removal programmes. It has been recommended that the regional executive authorities closely monitor the development and adoption of the relevant documents (programmes) at the municipal level.
Source: Regional Development Ministry
