LAHORE: President Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry Irfan Iqbal Sheikh on Tuesday said that Pakistani households and businesses are facing the problem of high energy prices. NEPRA’s latest forecast for power purchase prices for the fiscal year 2023–24 reveals a substantial financial burden, with consumers to bear 68 percent of costs for fixed capacity payments; primarily benefiting coal plants.
While addressing the press conference Irfan Iqbal categorically and vociferously rejects the recent hike in electricity prices.
FPCCI Chief added that, currently, residential consumers are unable to pay their electricity bills across the country; and, on an average, residential and commercial consumers pay 15–20 percent extra in the form of uniform quarterly adjustment; fuel price adjustments and additional surcharges.
Additionally, residential consumers pay an extra 20 to 25 percent in the form of electricity duty, sales tax and income tax; and, residential consumers have to pay Rs35.57 per kWh for off-peak load and Rs41.89 per kWh for peak load. It is important to note that these charges exclude taxes, fuel cost adjustments, uniform quarterly adjustments and additional surcharges.
Irfan Iqbal Sheikh explained that a commercial consumer with electricity consumption of 5000 kWh is subject to pay a hefty Rs381,785 rupees in electricity bill. It is astonishing to note that around Rs135,994 rupees will go into the government pockets in the form of taxes and duties; not including additional surcharge and fuel cost adjustment.
Sheikh suggested that a better and more viable option should be explored to meet IMF’s requirement to curb circular debt and provide affordable electricity to consumers. The immediate solution to reduce the power tariff is to reduce the operational costs of all power distribution companies, i.e. withdraw the provision of free electricity to Wapda employees; reduce Transmission & Distribution (T&D) losses and eliminate electricity theft.
Earlier, while addressing the press conference Chairman Supreme Council All Pakistan Anjuman-e-Tajran Naeem Mir announced that traders of Lahore will set up a protest camp outside the Press Club on September 1, against inflation and high rate of electricity. He also said that a protest will be held outside the press club every Tuesday against inflation.
Mir said that the country escaped default but 24 crore people were defaulted because they were unable to pay electricity bills. He also said that 60% of electricity consumers are living below the poverty line. It is the duty of the state to provide immediate relief to 60 percent consumers.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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