Fuel surcharge climbs to new high of 86.71 cents for October 

VINLEC says record diesel prices are to blame, despite its largest monthly subsidy yet

By Admin. Updated 3:26 p.m., Tuesday, October 20, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4). 

Electricity customers could pay more on their October bills, after St Vincent Electricity Services Limited (VINLEC) announced that the fuel surcharge has risen to 86.71 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), the highest rate this year.

In a release issued on Tuesday, the state-owned utility said the new rate is seven cents higher than September’s. It is also about three and a half cents above the previous high of 83.20 cents, which was applied to July bills.

The increase would have been sharper still. VINLEC said it put EC$798,591 towards the surcharge this month, the largest monthly subsidy it has applied so far. Without that money, it said, the rate would have gone past 92 cents per kWh.

The company added that its total subsidy has now passed EC$3.9 million since the Government’s cost-of-living measures were introduced in May.

Those measures were announced on 27 May by Prime Minister Dr Godwin Friday in a national address. Under the arrangement, VINLEC provides a 50 per cent matching discount on the fuel cost formula once the surcharge goes above 71 cents per kWh, and a full matching contribution once it passes 77 cents. Government also removed the customs service charge and excise taxes on diesel used to generate electricity.

So why the jump? 

VINLEC pointed to the price of diesel. It said benchmark diesel prices used by most Caribbean territories reached an all-time record in September, driven by global supply disruptions linked to geopolitical tensions. That increase, the company said, flows directly into the surcharge.

The fuel surcharge is a pass-through charge. It allows VINLEC to recover what it spends on fuel to generate electricity, so when world oil prices rise, consumers feel it on their bills. In July, VINLEC said it does not profit from the charge.

Looking further ahead, the company said it is continuing to invest in renewable energy to reduce the country’s reliance on imported fuel. It noted that the recently recommissioned solar farm at the Lowmans Bay Power Station has nearly tripled the amount of solar power generated at that site.

Work is also under way on a Battery Energy Storage System at VINLEC’s Cane Hall facilities. The project is expected to be finished in early 2027, and it is being installed to support more renewable energy on the grid.

In the meantime, VINLEC is urging customers to keep conserving electricity where they can.

Customers with questions about their bills can contact the Customer Services Department by email at [email protected], by telephone at 456-1701, extension 237 or 238, or on Facebook at facebook.com/VINLECSVG.

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