The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Friday proposed a hike in the power tariff by Rs3.2814 per unit for the months of October till March under quarterly adjustment.

A notice from the authority said the decision, on requests by ex-Wapda distribution companies (XWDiscos) for periodic adjustment in the tariff for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2022-23, was sent to the federal government for any intimation or action, after which Nepra would notify it.

The decision said Nepra “allows the positive quarterly adjustments of Rs135,584 million pertaining to the fourth quarter of the FY2022-23, to be recovered from the consumers of XWDiscos in a period of six months i.e. October 2023 to March 2024” with an additional Rs3.2814 per unit to be charged.

It added that the same terms would apply to K-Electric (KE) consumers as per the federal government’s policy guidelines for the authority to determine the same tariff rationalisation for KE consumers as consumers of XWDiscos with the same application period.

The decision further said the quarterly adjustment would not be passed on to certain categories of industrial cosumers in line with a previous Nepra decision.

Nepra directed the distribution companies to “keep in view and strictly comply with the orders of the courts” while bringing the quarterly adjustments to effect.

The PTI criticised the proposed increase in the power tariff.

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In July, Nepra had raised the national average tariff by around Rs5 per unit, pushing the base unit power tariff from Rs24.82 to Rs29.78. On August 22, the government had once again sought to raise the power rate by Rs3.55 per unit.

The persistent increase in electricity prices and fuel prices has led to widespread protests and demonstrations across the country against the hikes.