Pakistan regulator raises industrial tariff to 25.30 rupees — Dawn
In Pakistan, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) raised the special tariff for industrial consumers from 22.98 to 25.30 rupees per unit of electricity. The decision concerns an incentive package for additional electricity consumption introduced to revive industrial activity. As Dawn reports, the industrial sector opposed the package, saying it had not delivered the expected benefits and had increased electricity bills.
Votes split evenly
Nepra Chairman Wasim Mukhtar and the authority's legal member voted in favor of the tariff revision, while tariff member Amina Ahmed and development member Maqsood Anwar opposed it. The votes were split evenly, so Mukhtar used his casting vote to support the 25.30-rupee rate.
In a joint dissenting opinion, Ahmed and Anwar called the proposed tariff unjustified. According to them, Nepra's internal calculations put the marginal cost of additional electricity at 31.83 rupees per unit. They called for the package to be temporarily suspended until reliable data are obtained, rather than maintaining it at a rate that, in their view, does not reflect the real cost of supply.
The regulator's chairman said the conclusions of the two members require serious consideration. At the same time, he considered ending the program premature and said the Ministry of Energy should be given another opportunity to submit the information that Nepra had repeatedly requested.
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Warning for energy entities
All four Nepra members placed responsibility for the delay in the review on the government's energy division and its subordinate entities. The regulator said that the Independent System and Market Operator and the Power Planning and Monitoring Company had failed to provide properly prepared data on the marginal price, although they were required to do so.
Nepra set deadlines for submitting the required information and warned that failure to meet the requirements could affect the outcome of the program review, including its suspension or termination. The regulator also said legal proceedings against entities that fail to meet the requirements within the set timeframe were possible.
Additional amount in November bills
Separately, Nepra allowed electricity distribution companies to add 2.37 rupees per unit of electricity to all consumers' November bills under the monthly fuel cost adjustment mechanism. This is intended to ensure the recovery of an additional 25 billion rupees.
