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cost of electricity per KWH

Just wondering if anyone can recall how much they pay for electricity in Colombia per KWH (not the monthly total). I found one example here of 25,000 pesos per month but that actually doesn't tell me very much. I am on a very limited budget even by colombian standards and I am trying to decide whether I can afford to run any devices that use up a lot of electricity (like an A/C unit or space heater or a powerful computer system for instance).

I know that it varies by estrato but I will be happy with whatever answers I can get. To be more specific I am planning to rent in the north of bogota in an estrato 4 area (something like cedritos). There is a slight possibility that I could end up in an estrato 3 or 5 area. So those rates would also be helpful.

If you have paid electricity bills in Colombia but can't remember exactly how much they were, even a rough guess would be useful to me. I am assuming that electricity is in fact metered.

By pariahdog on Dec 30, 2007, 18:24 in Friendly Talkzone.

Robert Jorge says on Dec 30, 2007, 18:46:

Well, I have my old bills right in front of me. I lived in an estrato 4 apartment, but it was in Villavicencio. The price for a kWh was 271.55. We didn't use an AC, obviously no space heater, but probably used an average amount of electricity for 2 people. We used 156 kWh's on average per month with an average bill of $42.362 pesos ($22 US).

Our water / trash bill was generally half of our electric bill. I am looking at several old bills, and our average water bill was $22.000 pesos.

BEWARE of gold diggers.

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Gator says on Dec 30, 2007, 18:57:

We live in a six and to show you the difference for about the same usage ours is about $65 USD also no heat or a/c but gas for cooking and hot water. As best I remember is estrato 4 is neutral-higher above that lower below.Never looked at kwh rate

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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vicshere says on Dec 30, 2007, 19:14:

estrato 3 B/manga 279.03 per hour..... family of three uses up 168 kwh per month about 45,000

listo

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Robert Jorge says on Dec 30, 2007, 19:45:

Our gas bill was almost insignificant. My average was 4.250 pesos. At the time, $1.75 usd.

BEWARE of gold diggers.

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webmanco says on Dec 30, 2007, 20:14:

Amigos de Colombia

...A yo, déjenme queto y no me jodan má! ...

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travelingirl says on Dec 31, 2007, 00:32:

Around her hair she wore a yellow ribbon...

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tomtom33 says on Dec 31, 2007, 02:56:

Just do a PBH search on estratos.

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robi666 says on Dec 31, 2007, 04:31:

You can live in south Barranquilla or Santa Marta, where I'd say 70% of the people use a bridge on the electric meter...

"I am a citizen of the most beautiful nation on earth. A nation whose laws are harsh yet simple, a nation that never cheats, which is immense and without borders, where life is lived in the present."

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esluan says on Dec 31, 2007, 15:43:

what does it mean when you put a bridge on the meter....and what are the consequences if you get caught...I assume this is not legal and risky?????????????!!

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Robert Jorge says on Dec 31, 2007, 15:57:

I imagine the most common way to get caught is to have your house burn down or get electrocuted. No account, nobody checks.

BEWARE of gold diggers.

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Robert Jorge says on Dec 31, 2007, 16:02:

If a bridge is the same in Colombia, as what we did when I was in college: When the meter gets pulled, you just "fill in the hole". But it is a similar concept to the old fashioned Buss fuses that used to always blow. Just get a dime and stick it where the fuse used to be. And don't use a water based fire extinguisher when she starts a smokin. (By the way, the garage of my fraternity house burnt in 2000 or so) ... I graduated in '94, so don't blame me.

BEWARE of gold diggers.

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pariahdog says on Dec 31, 2007, 22:11:

Just want to thank everyone for taking the time to answer my question. You guys are great. Especially Robert Jorge and webmanco. Gotta love an actual scan of a utility bill. As for the concern about my low income, I spent 3 months in bogota last summer so I think I have some idea of the basic costs. I should be okay. Although things could get kind of hairy if my rent gets up into the 1,500,000 range, and it might. I am guessing that my new computer system could easily break 1 KW of power (9800GTX tri-SLI 5 Ghz quad core phase change cooling). Also I would love to be able to use a space heater at times.

So if i can manage to rent in estrato 4, I might get about 12 cents per kilowatt hour. That is about twice what I used to pay in Malaysia but a few cents less than I would be paying here in Boston. So to run a 1kw computer or space heater 24/7 would cost about $85 (USD) a month. Actually running that uber computer all the time would probably lessen the need for a heater.

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