Judgement on reducing KE’s subsidy reserved

Amid consumers’ opposition, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) reserved judgment on the government’s request for reducing electricity subsidy by about Rs20 billion through about Rs6.02 per unit increase in K-Electric’s consumer-end tariff from April to June.While concluding the public hearing on a petition filed by the Power Division for a hike in KE’s consumer tariff, Nepra chairman Tauseef H. Farooqui said the regulator would issue its determination shortly. In two urgent petitions, the Power Division had asked the regulator to increase K-Electric’s consumer tariff by up to Rs6.02 per unit under two past quarterly adjustments and allow its recovery from consumers in three months — April to June — to ensure a national uniform tariff. The hearing was told that the government already recovered an equivalent increase in tariff from consumers of ex-Wapda Discos. Under the request made by the Power Division, the tariff for up to 200 units of consumption in the domestic category would increase by Rs3.03 per unit during April and May and then Rs1.55 per unit in June. For consumption between 201 to 700 units, the rates would go up by Rs4.76 per unit in April and May and by Rs1.55 per unit in June. For all other categories, the tariff increase would be Rs6.02 per unit in these three months.