KARACHI, Nov 17: The business community feels that the reduction in power tariff is less than the proportionate fall in international oil prices.

Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Anjum Nisar in a letter sent to the federal minister for water and power on Monday stated that the chamber had consulted with consumers of various categories to seek their views regarding amendment in new tariff SRO 1043.

He said that stakeholders were of the view that the ministry had adopted an easy way of revising the tariff upward instead of taking into account the failure of power utility companies in bringing down their transmission and distribution losses.

Mr Anjum said that the amended SRO was silent about revising back to old system of slabs in which consumers utilising 99 units paid Rs1.40 per unit up to 50 units and Rs3.07 per unit on remaining 49 units as this change was mainly responsible for doubling the bills of small consumers.

It was unanimously decided that the revised rates would be rejected if old system of slab tabulation was not restored, he added.

The SRO also did not reflect the doing away of sales tax, withholding tax and TV cess on domestic and commercial consumers, which is unbearable.

He said that the press statement from the ministry did not reiterate that a fresh calculation on current prices of furnace oil would be carried out and utility companies would not be allowed to make windfall profits and new tariff so arrived at would be passed on to the consumers.

The amendment also fails to abide the agreement not to raise tariff for consumers under 300 units, but amendment is not for 50 units and these kinds of consumers are very low in numbers.

The KCCI president asked the minister to clarify these points.