Govt Defers Decision To Increase Electricity Tariffs

(@mahnoorsheikh03)

Govt defers decision to increase electricity tariffs

No formal decision was taken to increase the electricity tariffs in the ECC meeting.

Lahore (Pakistan Point News – 16th October, 2018) The government has deferred its decision to increase electricity prices.

According to details, a meeting of Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) was presided over by Finance Minister Asad Umar.

No formal decision was taken to increase the electricity tariffs in the meeting.

Sources said that the decision to delay the price hike has been done due to the absence of Federal Minister for Power Omar Ayub Khan.

Sources further said that the final decision regarding increasing electricity prices will be taken in the next meeting of ECC.

Meanwhile, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain on Tuesday said that the ECC had kept the present price of electricity and postponed the decision to raise it, while allowing export of surplus sugar.

He said the decision to raise electricity price was delayed till a report from the auditor general was received. After the report by auditor general it would be decided what to do with the electricity prices.

According to media reports, the government had prepared a summary to increase the power tariffs by Rs 3.75 per unit.

With this rise, at least Rs 400 billion will be collected from the electricity consumers monthly.

Earlier this month, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) had approved increasing electricity tariff by Rs 1.16 per unit. The increase in electricity tariff was done under fuel price adjustment for August.

Mahnoor Sheikh

The writer is News Editor, Pakistan Point. She has graduated in Mass Communication and has worked in various media houses