Shota Berekashvili: A differentiated approach means consumers who focus on saving will pay less, while those who consume more will face higher tariffs

“Until now there has been a single gas tariff regardless of how much people use, and we believe a differentiated approach will produce a fairer tariff,” Shota Berekashvili, chair of Parliament’s Economic Policy Committee, told Georgian Public Broadcaster’s First Channel.

He noted that introducing a differentiated gas tariff structure fosters social equity.

“Through the bill, we have extended the powers of GNERC, the energy and water regulator, so that it can set consumer tariffs for water until 1 January 2036 and for natural gas until 1 January 2038. When setting tariffs, the commission must consider a social component and apply a differentiated approach. The differentiated approach should be based on setting the tariff according to the volume consumed. The commission will decide exactly how to set the tariffs. For our part, we have created the legislative framework within which it can act.

At present, tariffs for both water and natural gas in Georgia are significantly low. Household energy tariffs in Georgia are approximately 7.5 times lower than the European average. Until now, we have had a single gas tariff: everyone paid the same rate regardless of how much they used or what they earned. A differentiated approach means that the more consumers focus on saving, the less they will pay. Those who use more will probably pay a higher tariff. The government also runs several schemes to subsidise the utility bills of socially vulnerable households.

A tiered approach means tariffs will increase alongside consumption; however, GNERC will decide the precise details of how these rates apply to different cases. From my perspective, this highlights two key points. First, Georgia needs to foster an energy-saving culture akin to those in many leading nations. This is a fundamental pillar of energy policy: from primary school onwards, citizens should be taught that energy conservation matters, embedding it as a vital part of public culture.

The second is that those who use more, because they can afford to, subsidise those on lower incomes, which creates social equity. Until now there has been a single gas tariff regardless of consumption, and we believe a differentiated approach will produce a fairer tariff. At the end of December, GNERC will do the calculations and publish them,” Berekashvili said.

For context, the Parliament of Georgia supported the bill “On Amendments to the Law of Georgia on Energy and Water Supply” with 79 votes.