The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Thursday approved a 20 paise per unit increase in electricity tariffs nationwide for the month of December. This hike, which also applies to K-Electric customers, comes on account of the quarterly tariff adjustment (QTA) for the first quarter (July-September) of the current fiscal year.
In a statement, Nepra confirmed the approval of a positive quarterly adjustment amounting to Rs1.187 billion for the first quarter of FY25. The adjustment, at a uniform rate of Rs0.1957 per kWh, will apply to all consumer categories, excluding lifeline and prepaid consumers. The adjustment will be implemented in December 2024.
However, Nepra also pointed out that, despite the increase, the overall electricity tariff for December would be Rs1.54 per unit cheaper compared to the existing rate. This is due to the expiry of a quarterly adjustment of Rs1.74 per unit for the 4th quarter of 2023-24, which ended in November, and its replacement with the 20-paisa adjustment for December.
Ex-Wapda distribution companies (Discos) had initially requested an additional quarterly tariff adjustment of about Rs6.4 billion for the July-September period, which would have resulted in a rate hike of approximately 36 paise per unit over three months. However, following modifications by Discos and Nepra’s recalculations, the final adjustment was reduced to Rs1.187 billion, translating into about seven paise per unit for the three-month period.
Nepra has decided to recover the combined impact of the three-month increase in just one month, spreading the 20-paisa per unit rise over December.
The adjusted tariff will apply to K-Electric consumers, except for lifeline and prepaid users, who will also see the adjustment implemented in December 2024.
