On October 27, 2026, Belize’s primary electricity provider Belize Electricity Limited (BEL) formally submitted a regulatory request to the national Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to double the existing 5% cap on its Cost of Power Adjustment (COPA) mechanism, a move that could ripple through household and commercial energy expenses across the country as citizens already grapple with sustained cost-of-living pressures.
BEL’s application outlines that the current 5% COPA ceiling no longer aligns with unprecedented operational cost headwinds: skyrocketing wholesale electricity import prices from Mexico, underperformance of domestic hydroelectric assets due to drier-than-projected seasonal water flows, and elevated reliance on more expensive local backup generation to prevent widespread unplanned load shedding across the national grid. If the regulatory body approves the proposal, the maximum permitted COPA surcharge would jump from approximately 1.5 cents per kilowatt-hour to just over 3 cents per kilowatt-hour, a 100% increase in the allowed adjustment margin.
Regulators emphasized that the proposal does not trigger an automatic rate hike for end users, as the COPA is a pass-through mechanism that only applies to unforeseen fluctuations in power procurement costs, not base service rates. The PUC has launched a public consultation period for the submission, inviting all residential consumers, business operators, civil society stakeholders and industry groups to submit formal written feedback no later than 4 p.m. local time on November 17, 2026, before the commission conducts a full evidence-based review to issue a final ruling.
BEL Seeks to Double COPA Cap as Power Costs Climb
