Electricity prices up, subsidies down
Keeping your home cool in Panama is going to cost more from July 1 when electricity prices will rise adding one more price burden to the escalating cost of living.
The amount of the increase is not known but, says La Prensa, some sources claim that it could be between 15% and 20%.
The Government has been providing energy subsidies to customers who consumed up to 500 kilowatt hours a month which covers more than 90% of the 840,000 users across the country.
Because of the increase in spending on this grant, it was announced that the subsidy will gradually be reduced to benefit only those who consume less thn 300 kilowatt hours a month.
Obervers say that, in addition to the direct impact on household budgets the increases will affect businesses, including restaurants and supermarkets, and service industries and that the increases will be passed on to consumers, helping to continue the upward surge in the cost of living.
