Interpretation

(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, “Chairperson” means the Chairperson of the Public Utilities Commission appointed under section 4(2) of this Act; “Commission” means the Public Utilities Commission established under section 3 of this Act; “Commissioner” means a member of the Commission and includes the Chairperson; “interested person” means a person that may be materially affected by a decision, Order or Regulation; “Minister” means the Minister for the time being responsible for Public Utilities; “public utility provider” means any person or company (including the lessee, trustee, receiver or liquidator of such 8 person or company) who owns or operates equipment or facilities for, (a) the production, generation, storage, transmission, sale, delivery, furnishing or supplying, directly or indirectly to or for the public, of electricity; (b) the provision of a service consisting of emitting, transmitting, switching, conveying, or receiving signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, or intelligence of any nature within, into, or from Belize by means of any system that uses any electric, electro-magnetic, electro-optical, or optic-electronic means; (c) the provision, storage, purification, delivery, sale, furnishing or supplying, directly or indirectly to or for the public, of water, or the provision of sewerage facilities through a system of pipes connected to households in any area or community, but shall not include any person or company not otherwise a public utility provider who furnishes the service or commodity only to himself, his employees or tenants, when such service or commodity is not resold to or used by others, and for the purposes of this definition “public utility” shall be construed to mean the service provided in the supply by such a person or company of electricity, telecommunication and radio communication services and water and sewerage services; “rate” includes every rate, fare, toll, charge, rental or other compensation whatsoever of any public utility, and every Rule, Regulation, practice, measurement, classification or contract of the public utility provider relating thereto; “service” includes the accommodation afforded to consumers, and any product or commodity furnished or supplied by a 9 public utility provider, and the plant, equipment, apparatus, appliances, property and facilities employed by or in connection with any public utility provider in performing any service or in furnishing or supplying any product or commodity and devoted to the purpose in which the public utility provider is engaged and to the use and accommodation of the public; “unjust” and “unreasonable” as applied to, (a) water and sewerage, and telecommunication or radio communication rates, shall be construed to include respectively injustice and unreasonableness, whether arising from the fact that the rates are excessive as being more than a fair and reasonable charge for service of the nature and quality furnished by the public utility provider or from the fact that the rates are insufficient to yield a fair compensation for the service rendered or arising in any other manner; and (b) electricity rates, shall be construed to include rates which are contrary to the Electricity Act, Cap. 221, and any subsidiary legislation made thereunder, and for the purposes of this definition “just” and “reasonable” electricity rates shall be construed to mean rates which are in conformity with the Electricity Act, Cap. 221 and any subsidiary legislation made thereunder. (2) The Minister may, by Order published in the Gazette, declare any person or company to be “a public utility provider” within the meaning of this Act, and from the date of such declaration, the services, activities or commodities produced, processed, furnished, supplied, generated, transmitted, delivered or sold by such person or company to the public shall 10 be construed as “a public utility” within the meaning of this Act.