ISLAMABAD:
Electricity consumers across Pakistan may face a further increase in their electricity bills next month after power companies requested a unit fuel cost adjustment (FCA) of Rs 1.20 for August, citing higher production costs due largely to expensive imported fuels, particularly regasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG).
If approved by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra), the proposed adjustment will allow power utilities, including erstwhile distribution companies Wapda (Discos) and K-Electric, to recover an additional Rs 15.7 billion from consumers through August electricity bills.
Nepra has scheduled a public hearing for July 29 to review the request.
The petition was filed by the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA), which said power demand in June 2026 was slightly lower than the corresponding month last year.
According to the agency, electricity consumption amounted to 13.066 million units in June this year, compared to 13.310 million units in June 2025.
According to CAPP, the main factor behind the increase in fuel costs was the sharp rise in RLNG prices. The fuel cost of RLNG-based generation has jumped to around Rs 35 per unit, almost double the Rs 16 per unit recorded in June last year.
The agency said the benchmark cost of fuel for June 2026 was set at Rs 7,714 per unit, but the actual cost reached Rs 8.90 per unit, creating a gap that requires an additional Rs 1.20 per unit to be recovered from consumers through the monthly FCA mechanism.
Fuel costs also increased due to limited reliance on oil- and diesel-fired power plants, which produced electricity at around Rs 52 per unit and Rs 57 per unit, respectively.
However, together they represented less than 1 percent of the national electricity supply.
Despite the proposed increase, the country’s generation mix remained dominated by relatively cheaper domestic sources. Hydropower, which has no fuel costs, contributed 39 percent of total electricity generation in June.
Local coal accounted for 10 percent, local gas 6.5 percent and nuclear power 13.5 percent, while wind power contributed 5 percent, solar 0.82 percent and bagasse-based generation 0.35 percent.
The CPPA said electricity generated from local coal costs Rs 11.5 per unit, compared to Rs 16.65 per unit from imported coal. Generation from local gas costs Rs 13.7 per unit, while generation based on RLNG comes to Rs 35.5 per unit. Nuclear power remains one of the cheapest sources, with a reported fuel cost of Rs 2.85 per unit.
