Sometime the government tries to do stupid things like telling them that they cannot increase prices and fares - and this is really rather unfair, when their COST has really increased and the maintenance of "old prices and rates" will only translate in a reduction of profits and income.
The only way for the government to keep prices of certain items, fares, etc low is for the government to provide SUBSIDIES (or compensation) to ensure that the COST remains the same - hence NO NEED to increase prices. Any increase of prices and the rakyat(the consumer) does not suffer....that is FACT.
That "not-so-smart" BN government seem to have really not considered the full implication of increasing FUEL prices -- what about the BAS SEKOLAH charges, transport vans/busses for workers, what about the increased cost of getting to work....Now when it comes to the BIG BOYS - the government seem not bothered about them increasing charges, etc...
ASTRO - they have increased charges, like recently they just pushed that 211 channel which contained a lot of soap operas in this new Maharaj Channel and charged about RM10 for that..and now they have that Astro On Demand where all good movies are...And I remember, when they started they said that we have to pay so that we can enjoy "advertisement-free" viewing. ASTRO also enjoys special treatment as they seem to be exempt from even the requirement of providing at the very least Bahasa Malaysia subtitles. And do look at some of the Bahasa Malaysia programs, the kind of language being used is pathetic and that is why the standard of language is on the decline.. Why is the government not doing anything....
Well talk about television - been shopping around for an aerial not wanting to be dependent on that ASTRO control - and guess what, the price for a workable TV arial is now RM250-00 (mind you that you can get a TV for that price today). Usi ng cheaper arials do not give you good reception -- WHY? They have not been developing those necessary transmission towers as they should since that ASTRO and its satelite disc came into the picture. In short ASTRO controls - and even for the free channels like RTM1, RTM 2,..., the consumer has to pay a minimum of RM37-95 - this is very wrong - it should be FREE (maybe the only requirement be the getting of a Satelite Disc and the Decoder) - if not the government must continue to ensure that ordinary transmission is improved and consumers can use their ordinary TV aerials.
Look at TNB -- electricity rates were increased and then we see that this TNB is making TOO MUCH profits, and the government is pleased. Why more profits? Beacuse the normal person is being charged higher and higher rates. (Just found out that rumah-kedai/the shop-house, that upstairs of shops that people stay is today being charged commercial rates.....mmmm. Should all residential premises be charged residential rates.
In October 2007, it was reported that TNB net profits increased by 88%....and so I ask what really is the justification of inceasing electricity rates..
"Tenaga Nasional Bhd's net profit by 88% to a record RM4.06bil for the financial year (FY) ended Aug 31, against RM2.16bil previously." (the said Star report is pasted below..)
At the end of the day, it is the small businessman, farmer...the SMALL PERSON who is being asked to keep prices down make less profits....BUT not the Big Boys...this is not at all fare.
I say that the government must get its priorities right - and place more importance on the good of the RAKYAT and less on them BIG Companies and their shareholders. Fuel Prices must come down....electricity tariffs must come down... and RI CH Malaysia has the requisite capacity to do that...
Saturday June 14, 2008
Cabbies to raise fare unless they get subsidised petrol
By TEH ENG HOCK
PETALING JAYA: Cabbies will raise their fares unless they receive subsidised petrol.Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Indian Taxi Owners and Drivers Association secretary S. Balakrishnan said they wanted to be part of the fleet card system too so that they could buy petrol below pump price.
Under the fleet card system currently used by buses and lorries, diesel is sold at RM1.43 a litre compared with the pump price of RM2.58.
“Not all the 26,000 taxis in the country run on natural gas. And there are not many natural gas pumps in the country. The queue is always long and a lot of times we have no choice but to pump petrol,” Balakrishnan said.
During the recent fuel price hike, the price of natural gas remained unchanged at 63sen per litre.
Balakrishnan said he hoped taxi drivers would be issued fleet cards entitling them to buy petrol at RM1.35 per litre, half the pump price of RM2.70.
“If not, we will have to increase our fares. We would like to start the first kilometre at RM4 instead of RM2.
“We will maintain the rate of 10sen for every subsequent 150m. When the cab is idle, like during traffic jams, we want it to be 10sen for every 20 seconds instead of 45 seconds,” he said.
Another way to avert the fare increase is to install gas pumps at all petrol stations and not limit them to Petronas stations.
“That way, we can go on with our business of transporting people and not waste time queuing up. It is even okay if they want to raise the price of natural gas to RM1 per litre.”
____Friday October 26, 2007
TNB profit soars 88%
By KATHY FONG and YVONNE TAN
Chairman: Impractical not to expect tariff change given spiralling costs
KUALA LUMPUR: Stronger power demand growth and foreign exchange gains boosted Tenaga Nasional Bhd's net profit by 88% to a record RM4.06bil for the financial year (FY) ended Aug 31, against RM2.16bil previously.
Revenue rose 14% to RM23.3bil on a 13.6% increase in electricity sales. Earnings per share (EPS) expanded to 94.92 sen from 52.52 sen previously.
TNB declared a final gross dividend per share of 16.3 sen, bringing the total for the year to 36.3 sen, representing 40% of the group's free cashflow.
Chief executive Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh, however, warned that the year ahead would be challenging for the national utility group amid rising fuel costs and increased payments to the fully completed Tanjung Bin power plant in Johor.
“Financial year 2008 will be a challenging year,” he said at the group's annual financial results announcement yesterday.
Che Khalib admitted that it would be difficult for TNB to achieve the consensus net profit forecast of RM3.6bil in FY08.Foreign exchange gains and the write-back on taxation accounted for nearly RM1bil of TNB's earnings.
Analysts said the group's profit may shrink if the contribution from these two items were to decline in FY08.
Che Khalib said the price of coal, the main fuel for power generation besides gas, had gone up substantially, adding that it would erode TNB's earnings in FY08.
He said the company had hedged 50% of the group's coal requirements for next year at US$50, against the current market price of above US$70.
Analysts said fuel costs would be the wild card for the utility giant's earnings, adding that the sustainable growth of power demand might help cushion the adverse impact of higher fuel costs.
Kenanga Investment Bank equity research sees electricity demand growing between 5.8% and 6.4% in FY08.
“The main concern for the company, going forward, is the rise in the price of coal.
“The company has locked in only half of its coal requirements for FY08, so this could be quite an issue,'' OSK equity research analyst Tursina Yaacob said.
TNB shares have sunk in the past few months as the fortunes of the utility stock were clouded by uncertainties over the Government's decision to raise gas prices, which would take a toll on its earnings in the absence of a pass-through mechanism.
The blue chip has fallen RM1.45, or 13%, since the beginning of the year. It closed at RM9.35 yesterday.
Che Khalib said electricity tariff would “naturally have to go up” if the Government removed the subsidy on gas. He expects the impact of the gas price hike to be “neutral “ for TNB.
Chairman Tan Sri Leo Moggie said the country's current energy prices did not reflect the true costs.
The former Energy, Communications and Multimedia Minister said it was not “practical” to expect no change in electricity tariff given the spiralling fuel costs.
For the fourth quarter ended Aug 31, TNB's net profit was sharply lower at RM139.8mil compared with RM745.6mil in the corresponding quarter a year earlier due to a foreign exchange loss of RM549mil.
Quarterly revenue was higher at RM6.1bil versus RM5.6bil in the previous corresponding period. EPS fell to 3.89 sen from 18.07 sen.
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