The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) is meeting with stakeholders for a possible review of utility tariffs for the third quarter of the year. Already, the PURC has met with the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and is considering other variables such as the current price of crude oil and the Cedi-US dollar exchange rate to enable it to fix the new tariff. Speaking in an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra Friday, the Director of Public Affairs and External Relations, Nana Yaa Jantuah said the process of consultation oh any possible adjustment would be completed by the end of August, 2011. She explained that until the PURC had completed the process, it would be difficult to tell whether or not tariffs would be increased. In February, 2011, the PURC announced the implementation of its revised Automatic Tariff Adjustment Formula (AAF) which sought to track and incorporate movements in key variables which had an impact on tariffs but which Iay outside the control of the utility companies. Following the introduction of the AAF, the review of utility tariffs would be done quarterly by the PURC. Under the AAF, electricity and water tariffs will be reviewed taking into consideration factors such as the world market price of crude oil and the cedi-US dollar exchange rate. The PURC decided to with any tariff increases in the second quarter of 2011. That action was explained by the commission as due to its recent monitoring and representations made by various consumer groups, which showed an increasing deterioration in the quality of service provided by the utility companies and widespread consumer dissatisfaction. In taking such a decision, the commission argued that it had recognised that there had been increases in some of the key variables which impacted on the operations of the utility service providers which would, under normal circumstances, result in increases in tariffs, but decided to withhold any tariff increases in May, 2011. Rather, the commission decided to take measures to address the situation. In its statement, the commission said, among the measures, there was the need to hold a dialogue with all stakeholders, including the utility companies, to establish the causes of the recent serious lapses in the quality of service.