PUTRAJAYA: 'Bantuan Prihatin Elektrik' has been introduced to lessen the burden faced by Malaysians experiencing high electricity bills during the Movement Control Order (MCO) period.
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said the assistance, approved by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, will benefit 7.66 million consumers in the domestic or residential category in Peninsular Malaysia.
The tiered electricity rebate will correspond to the electricity consumption rate of each consumer, he said.
"Under the Bantuan Prihatin Elektrik, 52.2 per cent or four million consumers in the domestic category, whose bill is below RM77 or electricity consumption is below 300-kilowatt-hour (kWh), will enjoy electricity for free for April, May and June this year.
"Consumers in the domestic category, whose electricity consumption is more than 300kWh, will receive a rebate of up to RM231 or RM77 monthly for electricity for April, May and June," he told reporters here today.
The rebate, under Bantuan Prihatin Elektrik, is introduced on top of the on-going electricity discount introduced since April, and will be reflected in consumers' bills for July.
Shamsul Anuar said that consumers who have already paid their electricity bills for the three months will see the credit in their July bill.
He said the government has also introduced an additional discount to consumers whose electricity usage is between 601kWh and 900kWh, with electricity bills between RM232.35 and RM395.60.
Shamsul Anuar added that these consumers will enjoy a 10 per cent discount on their electricity bills from April until September.
"A total 916,000, or 12 per cent, of total consumers will benefit from this discount," he said.
Shamsul Anuar said RM942 million has been set aside for the Bantuan Prihatin Elektrik which will be jointly funded by Kumpulan Wang Industri Elektrik (KWIE), the Finance Ministry and Tenaga Nasional Bhd.
"Following the implementation of the Bantuan Prihatin Elektrik, the total discount given to consumers from April 1 until Sept 30 will increase to RM2.2 billion."