Seoul City Raises Water Rates for the First Time in 9 Years... Temporary 50% Discount for Small Business Owners Planned

Applied from July 1 usage
Gradual increase of 73 KRW per ton annually for 3 years to minimize citizen burden... Progressive system abolished

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Seoul City will raise and restructure water rates for the first time in nine years since 2012. However, small business owners struggling due to COVID-19 will receive a temporary 50% discount on water rates for six months (July to December).

On the 4th, Seoul City announced that following the approval of the 'Partial Amendment to the Seoul Metropolitan Water Ordinance' by the Seoul Metropolitan Council on the same day, the increased and restructured rate system will be applied starting from July 1st usage.

To minimize the burden on citizens due to the rate increase, Seoul City plans to raise rates gradually by 73 KRW per ton annually over three years (a total increase of 221 KRW), rather than a one-time hike. This year, water rates will increase by an average of 5.9% compared to the previous year across different water usage sectors. For households, the rate will rise from 360 KRW to 390 KRW per ton. For a family of four, this is expected to result in an additional average monthly cost of 720 KRW.

Seoul City has recently faced an unavoidable situation where further investment could no longer be postponed due to rapid aging and insufficient capacity of water purification center facilities. As of 2019, the production cost per ton was 706 KRW, while the selling price was only 565 KRW. Accordingly, Seoul City has been reviewing water rate increases to secure funding, considering the urgency of investing in aging facilities.

The current water supply sectors, divided into household, bathhouse, public, and general, will be simplified from next year into household, general, and bathhouse categories, and the progressive rate system will be phased out sequentially. Public institutions, schools, hospitals, etc., which were charged the 'public use' rate lower than the 'general use' rate applied to commercial facilities in recognition of their public nature, will be integrated into the general use rate because many single buildings house both public and commercial facilities, making the distinction practically meaningless.

Regarding the progressive rate system, households, which derive almost no benefit from it, will switch to a single rate system starting in July, while other sectors will transition over two years from this year to next year. According to Seoul City, 98% of household users fall under the first progressive tier (0?30 tons), indicating that maintaining the progressive system has little practical benefit.

However, to support small business owners affected by COVID-19, a temporary 50% discount on water rates will be applied for six months (July to December). Eligibility for the discount can be checked from July 1st on the Seoul Metropolitan Waterworks Headquarters website's Cyber Customer Center, and detailed information on the discount and application methods will be provided.

Kim Tae-gyun, head of the Waterworks Headquarters, said, “Although the situation is difficult due to COVID-19, the facilities have aged over the past nine years during which rates were frozen, making further investment unavoidable, which led to the decision to raise rates. Through this rate increase, we will fundamentally improve facilities from the water purification centers to faucets and establish a reliable Arisu water supply system that people can trust and drink.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.