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Electricity

Posted on February 26, 2007
Filed Under Services, Cost of Living | Leave a Comment

You may not know about this, but Uruguay is a net importer of electricity. A large part of the country’s electricity comes from Argentina and a smaller part from Brazil. Perhaps because of this, electricity in Uruguay is not as cheap as it otherwise might be. Unlike the average American or European consumer whose expenditures with electricity are almost irrelevant when compared to the average wages; in Uruguay, a monthly electrical bill of 40-80 dollars may represent a significant percentage of the average family’s budget.

The electricity in Uruguay is provided by UTE, the state run power company. The way UTE bills its customers is complex and depends on many factors. Below is my attempt at deciphering the basic residential service plans. The first plan has three components:

A monthly fixed fee of 110 pesos.

A second fixed fee that depends on the contracted power (potencia contratada). This is essentially the maximum power you can consume, at the same time. UTE actually installs an Interruptor de Control de Potencia (ICP) that trips if you exceed the amount contracted. For a typical household this amount is between 6.6-8.8 KW and costs 32.9 pesos/KW. For example, a 6.6KW connection would have an additional fixed cost of 217 pesos per month.

2.916 pesos/KWH of actual measured usage.

Since my average monthly usage is about 300 KWH, my total bill if I were in Uruguay would be around 1202 pesos or 48 US dollars. Cheaper than my actual bill: 63 US dollars.

UTE also offers a tarifa inteligente, which could make sense if most of your energy consumption falls outside the peak hours of 17-23h. You pay only 1.9 pesos per KWH in the off peak hours, but 7.6 pesos/KWH otherwise, ouch. So you would need a lot of self-discipline to make it work.

UTE also has a pricing scheme that favors people that use very little energy. Under this plan, the consumer is limited to a maximum draw of 3.3 KW (enough for a refrigerator, electrical shower, a TV, a few lights and little else) and needs to pay in advance to receive a significant discount.

The UTE bill can be paid at Abitab, RedPagos and at several supermarkets and other businesses.

Other posts in Cost of Living

• Pros and Cons of Retiring in Uruguay
• Heating in Uruguay - Things to Consider
• American Income Tax While Living Abroad
• Overview of the Impuesto al Patrimonio (Asset Tax) in Uruguay
• Water and Sewer Costs in Uruguay
• Cost of Living in Uruguay
• The Effect of Exchange Rate on the Cost of Living in Uruguay
• Links to Cost of Living in Uruguay

Other posts in Services

• Furniture Moving and Delivery in Montevideo
• Water and Sewer Costs in Uruguay
• How to Search for Products and Services in Uruguay
• Which ATM Cards Work in Uruguay?
• Uruguayan Links
• Links to Articles About Transportation in Uruguay
• Plug and Outlet Adaptors Used in Uruguay

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