JPS appeal against $973m refund to customers set for September

The Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) says an appeals body is to hear in September, the case brought by the Jamaica Public Service (JPS) quash an order to refund customers almost $1 billion.

The disclosure from the OUR follows a call last week from the Opposition for an update on the order issued by the OUR in February.

When it issued the directive on February 17, the OUR, said the JPS had six months to refund customers $973 million.

However, although the JPS indicated that it would appeal the decision, little information has been forthcoming on the process.

In emailed responses to queries from our news centre, the regulators said both they and the JPS have appeared before the Electricity Appeal Tribunal for a preliminary hearing.

They say both sides are preparing relevant documents for further proceedings scheduled for September.

The OUR argued that the $973 million was unilaterally imposed by the JPS as foreign exchange adjustments on fuel supplied by Petrojam Limited from March to December 2013.

However, the JPS has argued that the amount is part of legitimate business costs and was mainly due to the impact of the devaluation of the Jamaican Dollar.