OPPOSITION Leader Inia Seruiratu has labelled the incoming new electricity tariffs as a “catalyst for a dangerous inflationary chain that will hit the poorest Fijian households the hardest”.
Rejecting the new tiered tariffs set to come into effect on January 1, 2026, Mr Seruiratu called for the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission (FCCC) to press pause on the implementation of the fees until a truly independent social impact audit was conducted.
Mr Seruiratu highlighted a number of issues about the impending charges including what he says was the “deception of the zero-increase for domestic users” narrative pushed by Energy Fiji Ltd and FCCC.
“The claim that 52 per cent of domestic customers will see ‘no increase’ because they use under 100 units is a calculated economic illusion,” he said. “As Leader of the Opposition, I remind the FCCC and the Coalition Government that electricity does not exist in a vacuum.
“When you raise the cost of power for the commercial sector — the supermarkets, the food processors, the rice mills, and the bakers — you are effectively raising the price of every loaf of bread, every bag of rice and every tin of fish on the supermarket shelf.
“A family might pay the same for their lightbulb at night, but they will pay significantly more to put food on the table the next morning.
“This is not protection.
“It is a hidden tax on the grocery basket of the common man.”
Mr Seruiratu said this move could trigger a chain reaction of profit recovery and was particularly cruel for Fijians in the Northern Division and maritime districts.
“By imposing a 24.2 per cent overall revenue increase, the FCCC is forcing businesses into a ‘Profit Recovery’ mode.
“The three-cent per unit increase for commercial users will not be ‘absorbed’ by business owners. It will be passed directly to the consumer.
“For businesses in Vanua Levu, Lau, Ovalau, and Rotuma, where freight and logistics costs are already astronomical, this electricity hike acts as a double tax. It discourages investment in the very regions the National Development Plan 2025–2029 claims to prioritise, further deepening the divide between Suva and the rest of Fiji.”
The Opposition Leader called on Government to postpone the implementation of the new charges.
“We call for the suspension of this tariff hike until a truly independent social impact audit is conducted.
“If this hike proceeds, the FCCC must provide a concrete plan to prevent retailers from using the power hike as a pretext for excessive price increases on basic goods.
“We cannot celebrate a ‘fair tariff’ that leads to an unfair price for bread.”
