The government will announce a reduction in water and electricity rate of at least 20 per cent in the coming days, The Sunday Times has learnt.

The new tariffs are expected to come into effect in April, following the national outcry against the hefty water and electricity rate rises introduced last October.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said last Friday that Enemalta had concluded its revised proposals for the water and electricity rates and the data would now be passed on to the Malta Resources Authority for approval.

Dr Gonzi confirmed they would be revised downwards as soon as the authority gave the go-ahead to Enemalta.

Sources said the government was planning to reduce water and electricity rates by at least 20 per cent, "in reflection of the declining oil prices".

General Workers' Union general secretary Tony Zarb recently told a rally that the government was planning a 15 per cent cut in tariffs, but he had added: "This is not enough. We want real changes not cosmetic ones."

Unions and employers teamed up in a chorus of disapproval against the rates announced last year - when the fuel surcharge was replaced by a tariff system.

And as oil prices tumbled from $147 to some $40 a barrel, they called for a drastic revision in the rates. However, the sources said that their request for this revision to apply from last October had been ruled out.

Communications Minister Austin Gatt told Parliament that Enemalta's revenue from tariffs last year did not even come close to covering the oil purchase costs, let alone the total cost of electricity.

Dr Gatt said revenue from water and electricity rates, including the old surcharge and the new tariffs system, was €292 million while oil costs were €333 million.

hgrech@timesofmalta.com