KS Government in trouble: Gas subsidies questionable, must secure alternative for Toplane-Sarajevo

SARAJEVO, (Patria) – The KS Government will take an official stance on the announced gas price increase from Energoinvest to Sarajevogas at its next session. This was confirmed today by the Minister of Communal Economy, Infrastructure, Spatial Planning, Construction and Environmental Protection of KS Enver Hadžiahmetović.

Although the KS Government subsidized the previous price increase (November and December) so that citizens would not pay higher bills, there is no confirmation for now that the Government will be able to continue with further subsidies.

“Next year, especially the first quarter, would be a big blow to the citizens of Sarajevo Canton. It is true that we have an announcement that the FBiH Government, along with gas distributors, will increase the price by 15 percent. With the existing 23.5 percent from November, this is a significant increase,” said Hadžiahmetović.

A meeting was held in April with all relevant stakeholders, and the FBiH Government and Minister Nermin Džindić stated at the time that there would be no price increase until the end of the year. However, the first price increase occurred in November, and a second one is announced for the beginning of 2022. 

"A new 15 percent increase is planned. What is more critical than the price increase is that Sarajevogas is being informed that we will not have sufficient gas quantities in January and February, and that our gas supply will be reduced by about 20 percent. This means that 20 percent of the areas in KS will not have heating, which means we will have to find alternative solutions for Toplane. We know how much the price of fuel oil and mazut has increased, and the air is more polluted then. We are informed about the price increase the day before, shouldn't we be notified at least a month in advance and told that the increase will be from such and such a date. This is a very difficult situation, but I think we will not be at full capacity to respond in terms of price, but we will ensure that the heating system functions properly," said Hadžiahmetović. 

If the KS Government cannot subsidize the further price increase, citizens should expect their January bill to be 40 percent higher.