Islamabad: On Wednesday, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet granted a temporary reduction in electricity rates for a segment of domestic and commercial consumers, a news source reported. The tariff has been reduced by almost half the previous amount for consumption of electricity during the winter season.
The committee fixed the rate for electricity at PKR 11.9 per unit for a 24-hour period. As a result, consumers that were paying peak and off-peak rates at the time were provided a relief of PKR 10.09 per unit. The purpose behind this exercise was to utilise the surplus electricity within the winter months. During these period, the demand for electricity drops to between 8,000 and 9,000 MW, which is much lower than the installed capacity of 35,000 MW.
The Ministry of Energy stated that this decision has been made based on precedents set by various other countries, including Chile. It is expected that this reduction in the per unit rate will lead to the usage of an additional PKR 24 billion worth of electricity in four months. According to reports, this decision was expected from the ECC since the past couple of weeks.
