The government plans to spend more than NT$100 billion (US$3.14 billion) shoring up the financial soundness of Taiwan Power Co (Taipower), the Executive Yuan said yesterday, adding that the expiration date for tax reduction measures for bulk materials would be extended from next month to June.
Executive Yuan spokesperson Lin Tzu-luen (林子倫) said the two measures are part of the government’s plan to avoid a surge in consumer prices that could be triggered by an electricity rate hike.
The state-run energy company had announced earlier this year that it is scheduled to increase electricity rates next month after accumulating a financial loss topping NT$385 billion.
Photo: Liao Chia-ning, Taipei Times
Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) said at the weekly Cabinet meeting that countries around the world have adjusted electricity rates in response to a dramatic rise in international fuel prices caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Lin said.
Taiwan has adopted a year-by-year approach to adjusting electricity rates to minimize the impact on consumer prices, Chen said.
Vice Premier Cheng Weng-tsan (鄭文燦) is to preside over a meeting today on stabilizing consumer prices, in which he is to announce that the government would extend the expiration date of tax-reduction measures for mining products, cereals and other bulk materials from next month to June, Lin said.
The funding that would be used to support debt-ridden Taipower is to come from last year’s budget surplus, Lin said.
“We are aiming to appropriate more than NT$100 billion [to Taipower], but the actual amount would not be finalized until after a more detailed calculation,” he said.
“We will also wait until the National Audit Office completes the audit of the central government’s general financial statement by the end of July to decide whether the funding should be listed as a special budget or a supplementary budget to be added to this year’s general budget plan,” he added.
As the new government led by president-elect William Lai (賴清德) is to take office on May 20, the funding plan for Taipower would be presented by the new Cabinet.
Hsia Yu-chuan (夏峪泉), chief of electricity development and management division under the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Energy Administration, said that rates would first be deliberated by the electricity price review committee, which convenes twice a year.
“In principle, electricity rates would be set in ways that would not cause inflation, but would help conserve energy, reduce carbon emissions and cover operational costs. However, the main point is that it must not lead to inflation,” Hsia said, adding that the electricity rate adjustment has been proceeding in a very detailed manner.
Local government officials and lawmakers across party lines have asked that the average electricity rate increase be limited to 12 percent to avert inflation, Cabinet officials said.
Meanwhile, Lin rejected a report that the government might levy a war tax.
“The government has regularly held meetings on military mobilization as well as military exercises and simulations to ensure the safety of our nation. We are not levying a war tax to raise military funds,” he said, adding that any further announcement from the Executive Yuan would come from him.
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