KARACHI: The Power Division has filed three petitions before National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) seeking to increase the electricity tariff for K-Electric consumers by 47 paise, Rs1.49-Rs4.45 and Rs3.55 per unit in different periods from Sept 2023 to March 2024.
The move aims to clear the backlog and ensure uniformity with consumers of Discos, the ex-Wapda Distribution Companies.
The petitions, which have not been approved by the federal cabinet, follow the countrywide protests over high electricity prices. Nepra has previously rejected or delayed these charges on technical and legal grounds, but has scheduled a public hearing on Sept 11 to review the revised petitions.
The Power Division claims that the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) has approved the policy guidelines for simultaneous application of Discos’ quarterly adjustments to K-Electric as well, but Nepra has asked for documentary evidence of the federal cabinet’s ratification.
The Power Division has also proposed to stagger the recovery of Rs146bn quarterly charges in six months, instead of three months, to reduce the ‘price shock’ for Discos consumers. However, Nepra had turned down a similar request for K-Electric consumers in May 2023 on technical grounds.
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