Sharjah: Unusually steep utility bills are burning a big hole in pockets of residents this summer.
Residents told XPRESS they received almost 30 to 50 per cent higher Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA) bills for July despite no significant change in their water, electricity and/or gas consumption that month.
“My total bill amount every month this year ranged between Dh350-Dh450, but in July, I was surprised to see a bill of Dh702 – almost Dh260 more than last time,” said an Al Nahda Indian expat.
Some even saw their bills doubled. “I usually get a bill of Dh600 to Dh700 per month for my two-bedroom apartment, but this month it’s Dh1,200,” said an irate resident of Al Tawuun area.
Residents vacationing abroad in recent weeks have also expressed outrage at receiving significantly hefty bills for periods they were away. “I received a Dh500 bill, almost Dh50 more than the previous month, on returning home this week after almost 20 days out of the house,” exclaimed an Al Nahda resident after holidaying for much of last month.
XPRESS could not get a comment when it visited a SEWA branch, but a senior official said on condition of anonymity: “Almost everyone in Sharjah including myself has had this issue this month and I think it is because we used more cooling and other utilities during Ramadan when we spent more time at home.”
However, those who run commercial establishments find that hard to believe. “If that was the case then shouldn’t my restaurant bill have been low as we were closed during the day in Ramadan?” asked an Indian expat who runs a cafeteria.
Last month, SEWA introduced changes in their billing structure, including a new 10-digit consumer number, a mid-monthly billing cycle and increased individual service charges.
However, natural gas prices are up from 125 fils per unit to 167.125 fils per unit while electricity at 30 fils per unit and water at 3 fils per unit of consumption still cost the same.
“All apartments in our building received inflated bills this month, but it should even out in the next cycle which should have fewer days counted as the meter reading seems to have been done very late this time,” said the watchman of a building in Abu Shagara.
