The charge hike was announced by Hanoi Electricity Company, member of theState-owned Electricity of Vietnam (EVN), along with detailed data on themonthly usage.
According to the company’s reports, electricity used in the capital city reachedan unprecedented high of 400 trillion kWh, much higher than the same periodlast year.
In June 5 alone, electricity consumption shot to upwards of 77 trillion kWh, up149 percent against the same period last year.
EVN Hanoi attributed this spike to an increased usage of cooling appliancesincluding air conditioners and fans, among others. In weekend, when mostfactories, companies and State agencies don’t work, the electricity load wasborne by households.
In addition, it said, the rate of household consumption accounted for 55 percentof total output.
EVN urged people to turn off all unnecessary electronic devices, especiallyduring ‘rush hours’ (9h30-11h30 and 17h-22h from Monday to Saturday), andpurchase products that were granted energy-saving labels with energy-savingrate accordant with the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s standards.
It recommended that even during days when outside temperature can reach up to45-50 Celsius degrees, in households, air conditioners shouldn’t be set lowerthan 25 degrees at daytime and 27-28 degrees at night, both to prevent themachine’s overworking and users’ heat shock when having to go out.-VNA