The increase in electricity tariffs affected consumers utilising more than 400 units while the tariff remained unchanged for 63.5% of domestic consumers, Federal Secretary of the Power Division Rashid Mahmood Langrial said.

Langrial was speaking at a media briefing on Saturday where he was accompanied by Caretaker Minister for Information and Broadcasting Murtaza Solangi to explain the current state of electricity tariffs.

He said that the electricity price was hiked to Rs6.5 per unit for 31.6% of domestic consumers. A staggering Rs2 trillion would be exclusively allocated to capacity payments in the upcoming year, Langrial added.

He added that a tariff of Rs7.5 per unit was only applied to 4.9% of domestic consumers. Langrial asserted that the average tariff increase for domestic consumers stood at Rs3.82.

“In July 2022, the highest recorded electricity tariff was Rs31.02 per unit,” he said, adding that the price had increased to Rs33.89 per unit by August 2023.

He confirmed that the facility of free electricity units to distribution companies’ officers would be discontinued. The federal secretary emphasised that the burden was not transferred to regular bill-paying consumers.

Solangi said that Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar had called a high-level meeting on Sunday to address concerns related to electricity tariff. All stakeholders within the power sector would participate in the meeting, he added.

The secretary informed the media that the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority determined electricity tariffs using three distinct methodologies. The three-month tariff adjustment was meant for new power plants, he said, adding electricity prices were subject to fluctuations based on the Consumer Price Index.

Moreover, he elaborated on the necessity of tariff alterations due to the upsurge in Kibor rates. However, fuel price adjustments also impacted electricity costs. In the fiscal year 2023, the tariff was initially set at Rs195/dollar, but the value of the dollar surged toRs284.

“We initially aimed to set the price of RNLG [regasified liquefied natural gas] at Rs3,183 per MMBTU, however, the actual price ranged between Rs3,000 and Rs 3,800,” he said. Similarly, the secretary said the price range for imported coal fell between Rs51,000 and Rs61,000 per tonne.