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Users can take their complaints to Edes and Protecom.
Santo Domingo East – A lady with high billing in June says she feels frustrated and helpless because her complaints do not receive a favorable response.
The country’s high temperatures, which are most of the year but intensify in the summer months of June, July, and August, increase electricity consumption and users’ complaints due to a disproportionate increase in the monthly bill from the Electricity Distribution Companies (Edes).
Mrs. Sonia German, an Invivienda resident, feels discouraged and helpless because her complaints against Edeeste before the Electricity Consumer Protection Office (Protecom) are rejected despite the excessively high bill.
In June, her electric bill was RD$14,856.9, and she does not understand why. She explains that her house has no inverter, no air conditioning, only uses the water pump on Saturdays, washes every two weeks, has low-consumption light bulbs, and only has two fans, a refrigerator, and a television.
She said she felt frustrated, and the situation caused her health problems because she is the breadwinner of the house and her husband is disabled.
Another case is that of Ana Bencosme, a resident of Ensanche Kennedy, who has been claiming bills without obtaining favorable answers from Protecom since May.
She indicated that her bills total more than RD$7,000, and only three people are in the house: her husband, herself, and her daughter. However, the house is primarily empty since her daughter has been in the fields since June, and she and her husband leave work at 7:00 AM and return home at 7:00 or 8:00 PM.
According to Protecom’s latest available data, 14,176 claims were received during April-June 2024. In April, there were 3,887 claims; in May, 5,250 claims and 5,039 claims. In that quarter, the highest number of claims was for Edeeste, with 7,994 claims.
The new Minister of Energy and Mines, Joel Santos, explained that three main variables are driving this exponential growth in energy demand: the expansion and diversification of the economy, the country’s high temperatures during most of the year, and the increase in the number of people with access to energy 24 hours a day.
On the other hand, Manuel Cabral, vice president of the Dominican Electricity Industry Association (ADIE), pointed out that high temperatures are increasing the demand and consumption of electricity.
He said that, as usual, the high energy demands tend to decrease when the summer passes and the temperatures become cooler. He reiterated ADIE’s call for proper planning in the electricity sector, which allows the various subsectors to be prepared for the various situations that may arise in the different seasons.
Indomet reiterated yesterday that August will be hot due to the gradual entry of dry air with a slight concentration of Saharan dust driven by a high-pressure circulation.
For this weekend, the sky will have few clouds in most provinces, and the thermal sensation will continue to be hot.
I would suspect the woman with the RD$14k bill has an electric thief tapped into her line. Edeeste at least should send someone out to check her line, i.e., shut off breakers at her breaker box, check if meter is still recording use. If meter is running, someone is stealing her electricity.
Another “trick” used by the electric companies is to not read meters every month and deliberately use underestimated readings for 2 or 3 months. Then, when a true reading is taken and the accumulated consumption is charged it pushes the amount into one of the higher consumption brackets allowing the company to charge higher rates. This works very well in the summer months when consumption is higher than other seasons. You really need to check the meter against the figures shown on the bill. If not correct complain to the office but in my experience, they are trained to ignore you or pretend they do not understand what you are saying. That requires a formal complaint and records of meter readings to force a reevaluation of the bill.