The Institution of Engineers of the Republic of Macedonia (IRM) is appealing to Parliament and the Ministry of Energy to remove controversial provisions from the draft Law on Energy that would allow for electricity invoices based on estimated, rather than actual, consumption. According to the engineers, these provisions could lead to inaccurate billing and financial harm for citizens.

The IRM argues that the proposed law, set to be debated in Parliament on April 22, would effectively legalize the practice of flat-rate invoicing, which has been problematic since the introduction of price blocks for expensive electricity in July 2022. They contend that irregular meter readings often place consumers in the wrong price blocks, resulting in inflated bills and unjustified charges.

The engineers estimate that even a 10% error in consumption estimation could lead to an annual difference of up to 8,000 denars (approximately 130 euros) per household. Considering the large number of households and electricity meters in the country, this could translate to significant financial losses for consumers and substantial profits for energy providers.

The IRM points out that while the Regulatory Commission for Energy has acknowledged the harm caused by estimated billing and initiated amendments to the Rules for Electricity Supply, the government is moving in the opposite direction. They criticize Chapter VIII of the proposed law, ironically titled “Consumer Protection,” for legalizing flat-rate invoicing through specific articles and paragraphs.

The engineers also express concern that the government is presenting the law as aligned with EU directive CELEX: 32019L0944, despite the fact that the directive does not permit invoicing based on presumed consumption. They further note that these provisions were not present in earlier versions of the law published on the ENER platform.

The IRM is urging Parliament and the Ministry of Energy to reject these provisions, specifically calling for the deletion of paragraph 2 from Article 185 and the removal of the second part of the sentence from point 2 of paragraph 4. They emphasize the need for fair, precise, and transparent invoicing based solely on actual measured consumption, reiterating that citizens should not be subjected to inaccurate estimates and mathematical errors that negatively impact their household budgets.