Industries will be charged Rs22.98 per unit for consumption above their previous levels
In a bid to promote industrial and agricultural development in the country, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has approved concessional tariffs on additional electricity consumption following a government reference.
Industries across the country are increasingly turning to solar power to cope with rising electricity costs and frequent outages. These include the textile, cement, pharmaceutical, rice milling and agriculture sectors, while households are also switching to solar energy due to the escalating cost of electricity. Earlier this year, the country reached a historic milestone in solar energy consumption when solar energy production exceeded supply from the national electricity grid.
To encourage consumers to switch back to grid electricity and to boost activity in the industrial sector, Nepra has approved reduced rates for additional usage. The federal government has received the regulator’s decision under which industries will be charged Rs22.98 per unit for consumption above their previous levels.
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The decision clarifies that for the next three years, industrial and agricultural consumers will be charged Rs 22.98 per unit for additional electricity consumption. After three years, the incremental package expires automatically.
The package will apply to publicly distributed electricity and K-Electric’s industrial and agricultural consumers. Positive fuel adjustments will apply to the excess consumption, but quarterly adjustments, date adjustments and negative adjustments will not apply. Duties and taxes will be set according to the amount owed and there will be no impact on households or other sectors.
The Power Division has welcomed the decision and initiated procedures to issue the related notification. According to the government, the industrial package will not affect private or commercial consumers.
Energy Minister Awais Leghari said the package would help boost industrial and agricultural activities in the country. He added that it would boost production and create additional employment opportunities.
Leghari stated that the three-year package would enable the industrial sector to plan more effectively for the future. Greenfield industries including data centers and crypto-mining will also benefit from the initiative.
He noted that industry and agriculture form the backbone of the economy. The government has reduced the cost of additional electricity units for the industrial sector – earlier Rs34 per unit. unit – and for the agriculture sector – previously Rs38 per unit.
The minister explained that the tariffs for additional units for agriculture have been cut from Rs38 to Rs22.98 per unit, while the industrial tariff has been reduced from Rs34 to Rs22.98 per unit. This, he said, would lower the average price of electricity for consumers.
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He further stated that if an agricultural consumer used 100 units earlier, the price of another 100 units would now come down by Rs7 per unit. unit on average. For industries using 1,000 units, the average cost of an additional 1,000 units will fall by about Rs5 per unit.
Leghari said prices for the industrial sector had already been reduced earlier and the latest cut will further support industrial growth. He added that the government was delivering on its promises and expressed hope that the initiative would help improve the economy.
The industrial package will come into effect after the Power Division issues the official notification. The package applies specifically to consumption that exceeds last year’s consumption.
