LAHORE, March 27: The Nepra (National Electric Power Regulatory Authority) resents Wapda’s (Water and Power Development Authority’s) effort to “periodically involve” the president in tariff regulation process, terming it an attempt to “tilt president’s attention in a manner that can create serious credibility crisis” for the regulatory procedure.

The Nepra, in a letter — NEPRA/TRF-12/WAPDA-2000/2187 — to the president’s office, in reply to Wapda’s accusation of unfairness, maintained that it required to balance its quasi-judicial and legislative powers for a credible perception of legitimacy by all stakeholders. It has to deal with the reality of expectation on the one side and a sense of fairness for different competing interests on the other, the Nepra letter maintained.

The Nepra makes its exclusive judgment drawing upon its technical expertise on various forecasts and projections. At the same time, the Nepra cannot allow its regulatory powers under the law to be “influenced or captured” by any interested stakeholder, including a public sector utility. It has, therefore, to maintain an arms’ length relationship with all stakeholders, the letter claimed. This, of course, is not easy since it provides the detractors an opportunity to view the role of the independent regulator (Nepra) with “cynicism,” the letter claimed. The efforts of Wapda to periodically involve the Chief Executive’s Secretariat to arouse concern about the utility being treated unfairly by the regulator is merely an attempt to tilt the attention of the chief executive in a manner that can create serious credibility issue for the regulatory process, the Nepra reply said.

“We would, therefore, suggest that the federal government convey a clear signal to the public sector utility (Wapda) that there is no looking back as far as upholding the regulation of the power sector by law through an independent body is concerned. The credibility of the regulator is also important in view of its role in restructuring of power sector initiated by the government,” the Nepra reply concluded.

The blame game started when Wapda, in a letter No. C/GMCS/T- 150(VOL)/767 dated 15.10.2001 to the Chief Executive Secretariat, accused Nepra of being unfair while deciding tariff of electricity. It cited the row between Nepra and Wapda which started with latter’s refusal to grant an across-the=board increase of Rs0.75 per unit and instead ending the slab system for consumers using 1,000 and above units.