ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan government has asked the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) to lower electricity prices, according to a media report.
The federal government submitted a request to NEPRA for a Rs.1.71 per unit reduction in electricity rates. The plan suggests using a tariff subsidy to make this possible. NEPRA will hold a hearing on April 4 to discuss the proposal.
The government wants this price cut to apply to all power distribution companies, including K-Electric, with the subsidy lasting from April to June 2025.
In related news, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently gave an update on electricity cost relief for Pakistani consumers. This came after a staff-level agreement with Pakistan to release a $1.3 billion loan tranche. IMF Mission Representative Maher Bennisy, in an informal chat with the media, said the IMF has agreed to a Rs.1 per unit cut in electricity tariffs for all users in Pakistan.
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Bennisy explained that this relief would be funded by money collected from taxes on gas used by captive power plants. He also said the government is working on a larger electricity relief plan, which will be shared once the IMF officially approves it.
Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had promised to ease the burden of power costs for people in Pakistan.