ISLAMABAD: The Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA) has approached the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) seeking an increase of 27 paisas per unit in electricity tariffs across the country, including Karachi, under the monthly fuel cost adjustment (FCA) for March.
According to the petition filed with the regulator, the CPPA has requested the upward revision to account for variations in fuel prices during the previous month. Sources within the power sector indicate that while the formal request stands at 27 paisas, there is a possibility the final approved increase may settle around 26 paisas per unit.
NEPRA has scheduled a public hearing on April 28 to scrutinize the petition and determine the extent of the additional burden to be passed on to consumers. If approved, the hike will be reflected in the billing month of May, impacting all consumer categories except for lifeline users.
This fresh request comes on the heels of a significant tariff hike earlier this month. On April 8, the regulator notified a sharp increase of Rs1.42 per unit on account of the February fuel adjustment, which is currently being recovered from consumers in their April bills.
The relentless rise in energy costs coincides with a stringent new load management regime recently enforced by the Power Division. Nationwide, citizens are currently forced to observe 2.25 hours of daily load shedding during peak hours, specifically between 5:00 PM and 1:00 AM.
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The government has defended these “controlled outages” as part of a “Peak Relief Strategy” aimed at reducing reliance on expensive imported fuel during high-demand hours. Authorities maintain that without this measure, consumers would have faced a further tariff surge of Rs5 to Rs6 per unit.
However, the combination of rising prices and scheduled blackouts continues to draw sharp criticism from domestic and industrial consumers already struggling with inflationary pressures.
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