ANDE bill suddenly higher? How to check consumption, tariff bands and extra charges

If an ANDE bill suddenly rises sharply, the final amount alone does not explain what happened. Four questions matter first: How many kilowatt-hours were actually recorded? How long was the billing period? Which tariff category appears on the bill? And which charges were added besides the energy itself?

One feature of Paraguay’s standard residential tariff is especially important: the consumption bands do not work like progressive tax brackets. Once monthly consumption reaches a higher band, that band’s unit price applies to the entire billed consumption.

The key rule: moving into a higher band raises the price of every kWh

For the standard low-voltage residential tariff, category 142, the tariff schedule that ANDE currently lists as valid gives the following prices:

The schedule explicitly states that the month’s total recorded consumption is billed at one price: the price of the band reached. ANDE does not bill the first 50 kWh at the lowest rate, the next 100 kWh at the second rate and only the remaining units at the higher rate.

This creates real cliff effects. At 150 kWh, the calculated energy component is about Gs. 52,484. At 151 kWh, it is about Gs. 55,183. In this example, one additional kilowatt-hour raises the energy component by roughly Gs. 2,699 because all 151 kWh are now billed at the higher unit price.

The 300 kWh threshold is even more striking: 300 kWh produces an energy component of about Gs. 109,635, while 301 kWh produces about Gs. 121,550. That is a difference of nearly Gs. 11,915 even though measured consumption increased by only 1 kWh.

This is one of the first things to check when the bill rises much faster than consumption.

Start by checking the actual consumption

Measured consumption is the difference between the current and previous meter readings. If the previous reading was 12,340 and the new one is 12,620, the meter recorded 280 kWh.

For category 142, 280 kWh falls in the 151–300 kWh band. The calculated energy component is therefore:

280 × Gs. 365.45 = Gs. 102,326

That figure does not necessarily explain the entire amount due. A bill can also contain separate items such as public lighting, previous balances, instalments or other charges shown independently from the energy line.

Compare kWh per day, not only one month with another

Two bills may cover different numbers of days. A simple comparison of monthly kWh can therefore be misleading. Divide the recorded consumption by the number of days between the two meter-reading dates.

For example, 300 kWh over 30 days equals 10 kWh per day. By contrast, 330 kWh over 35 days is only about 9.4 kWh per day. The second bill contains more total consumption even though average daily use was lower.

If daily consumption has also increased, then it makes sense to look for additional loads. Common candidates include air conditioning, electric showers and water heaters, water or pool pumps, additional refrigeration, or simply longer operating hours. As a rough calculation, power in kilowatts × operating hours = kWh. A 1.5 kW appliance running eight hours a day at full power would use 360 kWh in 30 days. Many appliances cycle or vary their output in real use, however, so the meter remains the decisive measure.

Very low consumption can still trigger a minimum billed quantity

Category 142 also has a minimum monthly billable consumption linked to the contracted load. The schedule sets 15 kWh for up to 3.0 kW, 30 kWh for 3.1–6.0 kW, 60 kWh for 6.1–12.0 kW, 120 kWh for 12.1–24.0 kW and 240 kWh above 24 kW.

This matters particularly for empty apartments, second homes or properties with very low use: a small meter difference does not always mean that exactly that small number of kWh will be billed.

The Social Tariff is a separate category

ANDE’s Social Tariff, category 141, does not apply automatically just because a household uses little electricity. ANDE lists additional documentary and technical eligibility requirements.

For eligible households, the tariff schedule provides a 75% discount up to 100 kWh, a 50% discount from 101 to 200 kWh and a 25% discount from 201 to 300 kWh. Put another way, eligible customers pay 25%, 50% and 75% respectively of the normal residential tariff in those consumption ranges.

ANDE’s FAQ lists conditions including a qualifying low-voltage residential supply, limits on contracted power and additional requirements concerning the connection and account holder. A household that may qualify should therefore check the tariff category printed on the bill rather than assume that low consumption automatically produces the Social Tariff.

A five-minute check for an unusual bill

1. Check the meter and supply: Does the meter number or supply information match the property?
2. Check the readings: Subtract the previous reading from the current reading.
3. Check the period: Count the days between readings and calculate kWh per day.
4. Check the tariff category: The table above applies to standard residential category 142. A different category has its own rules.
5. Check tariff thresholds: Consumption just above 50, 150, 300, 500 or 1,000 kWh can produce a disproportionate increase because the whole month moves to the next unit price.
6. Recalculate the energy line: Compare kWh × unit price with the corresponding line on the bill.
7. Read the extra charges: Do not confuse previous balances, instalments or other separate items with electricity consumption itself.

If the numbers still do not make sense, photograph the meter and the bill on the same day and keep the previous bill beside them. That gives ANDE a concrete set of readings, dates and charges to review instead of a general complaint that the total is too high.

The tariff values in this article come from Tariff Schedule No. 21, updated on 27 November 2024, which ANDE lists as current at the time of publication. For a later bill, readers should always check whether ANDE has since published a newer tariff schedule.