ISLAMABAD: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Thursday notified K-Electric to charge Rs3.93 per unit additional cost to its consumers in the current month’s bill to mop up another Rs5.8bn funds as ex-Wapda distribution companies (Discos) sought to add another Rs44.5 billion burden to their consumers in next three months.

In a notification issued on Thursday, the regulator said it had “decided to allow (Rs5.9342 per unit) positive fuel cost adjustment (FCA) for March, to be passed on to the consumers in their monthly bills of May”. This will translate into Rs5.814bn additional revenue to KE, according to the regulatory order.

The K-Electric had sought an FCA increase of about Rs4.49 per unit to be charged to its consumers in the billing month of May under monthly fuel charges for March consumption, involving a financial gain of about Rs6.4bn KE’s accounts.

At a public hearing early last week, the regulator had announced that it worked out the FCA increase at Rs3.70 per unit to provide Rs5.47bn additional finances to KE. However, in its notification, the regulator formally allowed Rs3.934 per unit increase in FCA with a fiscal impact of Rs5.814bn.

Hearing in Discos plea for Rs45bn on May 24

The KE claimed to have produced electricity from its generation fleet at an average rate of Rs26.44 per unit compared to Rs9.50 per unit of electricity imported from the national grid. This was attributed to 14pc higher costs of LNG supplied by SSGCL and 20pc supplied by Pakistan LNG Ltd.

Separately, Nepra also called a public hearing on May 24 on the request of ex-Wapda Discos seeking permission to pass on Rs44.46bn worth of additional burden to their consumers under the quarterly tariff adjustment (QTA) mechanism for the third quarter (January-March). This is estimated to push up the average Discos’ rates by about Rs1.5 per unit for three months.

The increase was sought by the Discos on account of capacity charges, market operator fee, the impact of additional sales under incremental sales incentive scheme for the industrial sector, the use of system charges, market operator fee, transmission and distribution losses on account of fuel cost adjustment, variable operation and maintenance charges for the third quarter of the current fiscal year.

Published in Dawn, May 12th, 2023