ISLAMABAD: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has approved negative adjustment of Re 0.78/kWh in FCA of Discos to refund over Rs 11 billion to the consumers for June 2025 to be applicable for Discos jurisdiction and Rs 1.89/kWh for fourth quarter of FY 2024-25 across the country including K-Electric.
Central Power Purchasing Agency–Guaranteed (CPPA-G) had sought negative adjustment of Rs 0.65/kWh. Nepra held a public hearing on July 30, 2025 to verify generation data and hear viewpoints of consumers whereas hearing on QTA was held on August 4, 2205.
Under QTA, Discos will refund Rs 55.874 billion to the consumers in three months, ie, from August to October 2025. Discos collectively had sought negative adjustment of Rs 53.393 billion.
Nepra hints at negative tariff adjustment of Rs1.80/unit
The negative FCA will be applicable to all the consumer categories except lifeline consumers, protected consumers, Electric Vehicle Charging Stations (EVCS) and pre-paid electricity consumers of all categories who opted for pre-paid tariff.
Discos will reflect the fuel charges adjustment in respect of June 2025 in the billing month of August 2025. Its impact will be shown separately in the consumers’ bills on the basis of units billed to the consumers in the month of June 2025.
In case any bills of August 2025 are issued before the notification of this decision, it will be applied in the subsequent month.
While effecting the Fuel Charges Adjustment, the concerned Discos will keep in view and strictly comply with the orders of the courts notwithstanding this order.
Member (Technical), in his additional note stated that persistent governance failures in the power sector have led to prolonged outages, delayed project execution, and inadequate transmission planning — all of which are directly contributing to rising generation costs and higher monthly Fuel Cost Adjustments (FCA).
Examples include the continued forced outage of Guddu Unit-16 and the prolonged non-operation of the Neelum-Jhelum project. The 747 MW Guddu unit alone resulted in an additional cost of Rs. 827 million in June 2025, with cumulative losses reaching Rs. 116.827 billion since July 2022.
Meanwhile, Neelum-Jhelum remains offline despite Rs. 75.5 billion already recovered from consumers through the dedicated surcharge—further burdening the system.
He further stated that delays in critical infrastructure projects such as the Lahore North Grid Station and SCADAIII reflect deep-rooted inefficiencies.
Transmission bottlenecks—including the underutilization of the HVDC line (operating adjustment 43%) and persistent South-North corridor constraints—led to Rs. 201 million in avoidable losses in June alone, with total losses for FY 2024-25 amounting to Rs. 14.061 billion. These issues are further compounded by the sluggish progress on key NGC initiatives.
The Part Load Adjustment Charges (PLAC) reached Rs. 4.1 billion in June and Rs. 41.2 billion for the fiscal year, underscoring the urgent need for better demand planning and improved system reliability.
Member (Tech) said that collectively, these compounding governance lapses are inflating power costs, driving up consumer tariffs, and jeopardizing the financial sustainability of the sector. Immediate and coordinated reforms are needed to address operational inefficiencies, stabilize the FCA, and restore sectoral efficiency.
Though these issues may appear repetitive, their recurrence reflects a persistent pattern of governance breakdowns—not isolated incidents, but a continuation of systemic failures. This repetition is symptomatic of chronic mismanagement.
Member (Tech) added that in his view, accountability is the critical missing link. Without real accountability, reforms alone will not be sufficient to achieve lasting improvements.
Sustainable progress requires that institutions and individuals be held responsible for inefficiencies, delays, and poor decision-making. “Only then can reforms be effective, efficiency be restored, and the power sector be put back on a stable and sustainable path,” he concluded.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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