NEPRA approves Rs2.37 per unit electricity tariff hike for November bills

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has approved a Rs2.37 per unit increase in electricity tariffs under the September monthly fuel price adjustment, with the additional charge set to appear in consumers’ November bills.

The increase will also apply to K-Electric consumers, according to NEPRA’s decision.

The Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA) had requested an increase of Rs2.56 per unit under the September fuel price adjustment. However, NEPRA approved a lower increase of Rs2.37 per unit.

In a separate decision, the regulator approved a Rs2.32 per unit increase in the concessional electricity rate for additional consumption by industrial and agricultural consumers. NEPRA forwarded the decision to the federal government.

Under the revised rate, electricity supplied through the additional consumption package will cost Rs25.30 per unit, compared with the previous rate of Rs22.98.

The new tariff will take effect from the November billing cycle.

The federal government currently provides industrial and agricultural consumers with relief ranging from Rs11 to Rs15 per unit on electricity consumed beyond their existing usage.

NEPRA reached the decision on the revised concessional rate through the casting vote of its chairman. However, two members, Amna Ahmed and Maqsood Anwar Khan, submitted dissenting notes against the decision.

In their notes, the members questioned the basis for setting the rate at Rs25.30 per unit, describing the proposed tariff as “baseless”.

The concessional rate formed part of the government’s Roshan Economy Power Package, which Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif announced in October last year to support industrial and agricultural production, exports and employment.

The three-year package, which runs from November 2025 to October 2028, initially set the concessional rate at Rs22.98 per unit. It applied only to electricity consumed above the previous year’s usage, while consumers continued to pay existing rates for their base consumption.

Under the scheme, the government offered reduced electricity rates on additional consumption, with discounts increasing according to the volume of electricity used by industrial and agricultural consumers.

The package set the additional consumption rate below the prevailing tariffs, which stood at around Rs34 per unit for industrial consumers and Rs38 per unit for agricultural consumers.