The actual cost of one gigacalorie of heat in the Housing and Utilities Ministry system is about 180 rubles. These figures were provided by Housing and Utilities Minister Hennadz Trubila in an interview with STV.
“The cost of one gigacalorie today is about 180 rubles, while the population now pays 29 or 24 rubles. Therefore, there is a budget subsidy, and naturally we have limited the percentage of losses in order to save, first of all, budget funds,” he said.
According to him, efforts are being made within the system to reduce heat losses, which also affects the cost of thermal energy.
“Fifteen years ago, heat losses were around 20%. Today, heat losses amount to 8.2%. So during this period, losses have been reduced, and we have imposed limits on housing and utility enterprises. In other words, if they lose more than the permitted amount, it comes out of the enterprises’ own funds. They have an incentive to reduce losses, replace heating pipelines, and thereby improve efficiency,” he said.
Trubila explained that the replacement of heating networks began 10 years ago. Pre-insulated pipes are being installed. In many small settlements, the replacement of pipes has already been completed.
“During this period, we had only eight major accidents in heating supply systems. That is relatively few, considering that some boiler houses were operating at maximum load so that residents could feel comfortable in their apartments,” the minister noted.