Water tariffs for residents have been reduced in Kobleve

Kobleve. Photo: Facebook/ Photo gallery of Ukrainian towns and villages

In Kobleve, tariffs for centralised water supply and sewerage services for residents have been temporarily reduced. Meanwhile, the tariff for refuse collection has remained unchanged.

Members of the Kobleve Village Council’s executive committee unanimously supported the decision during a meeting.

It should be noted that, following a decision by the executive committee, tariffs were due to rise in the community from 1 November. However, as Valerii Shtyk, acting head of the «Koblivskyi Sillkomhosp» municipal enterprise, explained, following the approval of the new tariffs, the village council received complaints regarding the financial burden on residents.

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Consequently, an initiative group was formed, comprising members of the public, councillors and veterans, which proposed setting separate tariffs for the population.

It was decided that, from 1 November, the centralised water supply for residents would cost 35 hryvnias (whereas it was due to cost 49.51 hryvnias per m³), and wastewater disposal would cost 26 hryvnias (whereas it was due to cost 44.94 hrynias per m³). The tariff for refuse collection was left at 46.98 hryvnias.

According to the company’s director, the tariff reductions were agreed on the condition that the community would support the utility company. In particular, the village council plans to assist with the purchase of equipment to detect unauthorised connections to the network.

«The village council will help us purchase equipment that will enable us to detect unauthorised connections. They do exist. We will submit our proposal regarding the purchase of this equipment at the next session. I believe that if the equipment is effective in identifying these issues, it will resolve the financial problem. We will no longer have water theft, our electricity consumption will fall, and the load on the pumping station will be reduced,» remarked Valerii Shtyk.

At the same time, Svitlana Talokha, secretary of the Kobleve Village Council, pointed out that the new tariffs are not economically justified and may not cover all the company’s costs, particularly those relating to fuel. The possibility of offsetting part of the costs from the budget depends on the receipt of funds, which are currently frozen.

«To date, the state has not authorised any payments for exactly one month. Our village council alone owes nearly 4 million hryvnias to creditors for various purposes across different institutions. Therefore, it remains to be seen how this support will be provided in future unless the state procedure for funding payments by local authorities is unblocked and the legislative changes required by the European Union, international bodies and members of the Verkhovna Rada are implemented. If nothing changes here, we have no answers,» she noted.

It was also noted that the tariffs have been reduced temporarily, but no specific timeframe for the decision has been set. There are no plans to increase them until the end of 2026. The situation will be reviewed in future depending on the community’s financial capabilities and the performance of the municipal utility.

It should be recalled that the Kobleve community may lose part of its international donor support after being included in the list of territories where hostilities may occur.