AMMAN — Following the transition to
monthly water billing in Aqaba, many residents have expressed surprise in an
“unacceptable” rise in the cost of their bills, Al-Ghad News reported.
اضافة اعلان
As of 2023, the
Aqaba Water Company began
implementing a decision to divide consumption bands and issue water bills on a
monthly instead of quarterly basis, issuing the first monthly bill at the end
of January.
Residents of Aqaba
protested the switch after they were surprised by unexpectedly costly bills in
January, which, for some, totaled many times the value of their standard quarterly
bills.
Citizens stressed
that their consumption “has not changed at all”, especially since the winter
season limits
water consumption in the first place. They expressed fears that
water bills will increase even more with the onset of summer, especially since
the hot weather in Aqaba pushes residents to consume large quantities of water.
‘Changed equation’One Aqaba resident, Muhammad Zaid, said his
water consumption has remained steady for the past year. “I used to pay about JD40
for water on my quarterly bill. But when the monthly bill was issued, I was
surprised by an increase of more than JD80 on my bill, which totaled JD116.”
Citizen Abdullah Kreishan stated: "The
value of the previous quarterly bill, based on a consumption of
75 cubic meters of water, was JD60. With the new arrangement, the value of consumption of the
same amount exceeds JD160, which means that the company has changed its equation
for the price of water consumed."
"This is unfair towards the citizen
who receives services from the
Aqaba Water Company,” he said, calling for a
reconsideration of the meter price and the tariff difference.
“We are still in the winter season when
water consumption is very low, and this is illogical and unacceptable,"
Kreishan added.
This new rise in the cost of water bills
comes on top of another recent increase after digital meters were installed,
citizens complained, calling on the government and the water company to
reconsider the billing system and revert to quarterly bills in addition to
changing the meters, which have placed a financial burden on Aqaba residents.
Water company commentsRegarding the increase of some bills, the
water company commented that “only those who have high consumption or whose
internal water networks are subject to smuggling/leakage may notice the
difference. People with normal consumption and no network problems will not
notice any difference at all.”
The company explained that the consumption
bands have been divided into smaller segments. Instead of 18 cubic meters per
segment, the new segments have a volume of 6 cubic meters. However, the tariff has
not been changed and no additional fees have been applied to the monthly bills.
For clarification, the company said, the first
band previously covered consumption from 0–18 cubic meters over the course of
three months, at a value of JD7.21. Now, the first band covers 0–6 cubic meters
at a price of JD2.5.
Within the previous tariff, the highest
band began with consumption exceeding 126 cubic meters over the course of 90
days, whereas the highest band on the new bills begins with a consumption of
more than 42 cubic meters over the course of 30 days.
‘No price changes’“Monthly billing reduces the financial
burdens on citizens,” the company argued, stating that quarterly billing
replaced a monthly cycle in 2012, and “no changes to the price of water have
been imposed.”
Furthermore, “determining the tariff is the
responsibility of the Ministry of Water, and all water companies, including the
Aqaba Water Company and
Miyahuna… simply apply the tariff set by the ministry”.
The company requested members of the public
with inquiries to visit the customer service offices in Aqaba and submit their
comments.
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