Govt seeks to extract Rs29bn more from electricity consumers for April

The government has sought the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority’s (Nepra) approval for an additional fuel cost adjustment (FCA) of Rs3.5 per unit to extract over Rs29 billion from consumers for electricity they consumed in April. Surprisingly, this demand comes despite the fact that 75 per cent of the overall power supply during the month was generated from cheaper local fuels. The Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA) — a subsidiary of the Power Division — has filed a formal petition before the regulator for an increase of Rs3.4883 per kWh over the reference tariff of Rs5.492 per unit already charged to consumers in April.