The government has fulfilled another requirement set by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by approving a summary for the annual re-basing of electricity tariffs, Express News reported.
The decision was taken during a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) in Islamabad, chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.
In line with the IMF agreement, the ECC directed that the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) issue annual policy guidelines for the tariff rebasing process. The rebasing will take effect from January 1 with the Power Division tasked with ensuring NEPRA’s compliance with the new guidelines.
The ECC meeting also approved significant financial allocations to various sectors as the Ministry of External Affairs received a technical grant of over Rs. 90 million, which will be used by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Pakistan Air Force (PAF) to improve their operational capabilities.
In addition, the committee sanctioned a grant of Rs940 million to meet the operational needs of Frontier Corps (FC) North. It also approved the withdrawal of a bank guarantee linked to Afghan transit trade through the Gwadar port.
Additional funding was allocated for the establishment of the National Food Safety and Plant Health Authority, with the ECC approving a technical grant of Rs 910 million. to its formation.
In an important step for state-owned enterprises, the committee approved a subsidy of Rs 930 million. for payment of salary to employees of Pakistan Steel Mills. This subsidy will be drawn from previously approved funds of Rs 3.5 billion.
