Turkey lowers limit for power users to switch suppliers

By Gulsen Cagatay

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EMRA) decreased the usage limit for electricity customers to become eligible to switch suppliers from 2,000 kilowatt-hours to 1,600 kilowatt-hours, EMRA said Friday.

From 2019, customers who use more than 1,600 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year will qualify as eligible customers who have the right to move to a power supplier of their choice, EPDK said in a statement.

With the new limit, 19 million more electricity customers are set to become eligible in 2019.

- Latest limit qualifier equals monthly bill of 67 Turkish liras ($12.74)

In accordance with the latest decision, a customer with a monthly power bill of approximately 67 Turkish liras will be classified as an eligible consumer next year.

As part of Turkey's comprehensive program to liberalize and privatize the electricity market in 2001, the country's distribution network was divided into 21 distribution regions in 2013 and has started to lower customers' eligibility limits since 2003.

In 2003, EMRA started a consumer scheme to offer individual customers and legal and corporate entities, which consume more than 9 million kilowatt-hours of electricity a year, the opportunity to choose their preferred electricity supplier.

EMRA has adjusted the limit in recent years to allow more people to qualify.

The biggest adjustment came in a meeting in January 2013, when the limit was lowered from 25,000 kilowatt-hours in 2012 to 5,000 kilowatt-hours in 2013.

Since then, further modifications have been made. The limit was set as 4,500 kilowatt-hours in 2015, 3,600 kilowatt-hours in 2016, 2,400 kilowatt-hours in 2017 and 2,000 kilowatt-hours in 2018.