Karaganda residents to get 3.1 billion tenge refund for utility overcharges
Residents in the Karaganda region will receive refunds totalling over 3.1 billion tenge for overcharged utility services. The money comes from natural monopoly providers that failed to use collected tariff funds as planned.
An audit of 73 companies in 2024 uncovered that 18 had not completed their promised work or expenditures. This led to the decision to return the unused funds to consumers.
The largest share of the refund, 2.27 billion tenge, will go towards water supply and wastewater disposal. The total amount, including the National Bank's refinancing rate, exceeds 3.1 billion tenge.
A new compensatory tariff system will ensure future refunds if providers collect money but do not spend it properly. This mechanism will stay in place for one year, from January 1, 2026, to March 1, 2027. The refunds follow an investigation into how companies managed tariff funds. The audit revealed that some providers had charged customers for services or improvements that were never delivered.
The compensatory tariff rules will now require providers to use funds correctly or return them. Consumers in the Karaganda region will see the refunds distributed across different utility services. The system aims to prevent similar overcharges in the future.
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