Fixed Charges Based on Sanctioned Load Raise Household Power Bills
The government has introduced sanctioned load charges for residential electricity consumers. This means households will pay fixed monthly fees even if they use little power. As a result, many families may see higher bills.
Officials shared this update during a public hearing in Islamabad. However, no representative appeared for the country’s 28.5 million residential consumers.
Fixed Charges Linked to Load
The Power Division explained that fixed charges will depend on sanctioned load, not on total consumption. Therefore, consumers will pay based on their approved kilowatt capacity.
For example, a household with a 2kW load will pay Rs400 per month. A 5kW load will cost Rs2,500 monthly. In addition, a 6kW sanctioned load will bring a fixed bill of Rs4,050 each month.
Officials said this marks the first time Pakistan will apply a two-part tariff system. The goal is to recover Rs2.56 trillion in annual capacity costs.
Industry Gets Relief from Subsidy
The government also reduced industrial power rates by Rs4.04 per unit. As a result, industries will no longer carry cross-subsidy burdens for the first time.
Officials said the industrial tariff may fall to around 11.50 cents per unit. However, it still remains higher than some regional competitors.
Financial experts warned that fixed charges will raise domestic tariffs sharply. Optimus Capital estimated protected consumers could face up to a 76% rise in the first 100-unit slab.
Non-protected users may see even higher increases. For instance, tariffs could jump by 74% for the first 100 units.
Overall, sanctioned load charges will increase bills for most households. Meanwhile, industries will benefit from reduced subsidy pressure and improved competitiveness.
