Islamabad: Federal Minister for Energy Owais Leghari admitted during a Senate session that the tariff approved by NEPRA for K-Electric is unjustified. Responding to a calling attention notice, the minister stated that K-Electric claims it is unable to recover 6.5% of its billed amount and insists that either the government or consumers should bear this loss—a demand he termed unacceptable. He revealed that the government has filed a review petition with NEPRA against the decision, and if accepted, it could save Pakistan Rs. 650 billion over the next seven years.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Leghari highlighted that NEPRA allowed 13.9% in line losses, which he described as excessive based on audit reports suggesting the figure should be around 8–9%. He also criticized K-Electric’s calculation of working capital costs, noting that while the utility company borrows from banks at KIBOR + 0.5% or 1%, it charges consumers at KIBOR + 2%, which is unfair.
The minister emphasized that for the first time in Pakistan’s history, the current government has thoroughly reviewed NEPRA’s decision and submitted a detailed review, challenging multiple cost components. He explained that tariff determination involves 8–9 segments, and the government requested reductions across all of them.
If the review is rejected, Leghari warned, K-Electric would unjustifiably receive Rs. 650 billion, a burden the entire nation would have to bear. He further stated that last year alone, the government paid Rs. 175 billion to K-Electric as tariff differential subsidy—funds that could have been used for significant development projects.
Leghari also noted that while government-owned DISCOs have their tariffs calculated based on 100% recovery, K-Electric was being granted a higher margin. Apart from the federal government, political parties including MQM and Jamaat-e-Islami have also filed review petitions against NEPRA’s decision.
