KARACHI:The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) on Wednesday rejected the power companies’ demand to raise power tariff by Rs2.07 per unit in terms of July’s fuel charge adjustment (FCA). People across Pakistan are protesting against the inflated electricity bills to put pressure on the government for relief.

The power companies sought the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA) to hike the electricity tariff by Rs2.07 per unit for July fuel charge adjustment (FCA). In this regard, the NEPRA heard the plea that stated that the ratio of power generation from thermal resources was 37.18%, 14.68% from coal, 1.98% from furnace oil, and 1967% from Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in July.

The rate of local power production was 7.61%, 14.29% from nuclear fuel for generating 14.388 billion units of electricity. The production cost was recorded at Rs8.96 per unit, whereas, the reference cost was fixed at Rs6.89 per unit. However, the NEPRA authority remained upset over the request for an increase in electricity prices. The authority was not satisfied with the data presented by the CPPA. The NEPRA Chairman directed the CPPA officials to get the statistics correct.

He held that the burden of incorrect data will not be put on electricity consumers.” Why was the investment plan approved by NEPRA not implemented?” Chairman NEPRA questioned. He further added that the NEPRA authority will look into the technical issues separately. The chairman vowed that he would not let the debris of technical problems fall on the people. The hearing on the request to increase the price of electricity in NEPRA has been completed

Earlier in the month, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) launched an investigation into the issue of over-billing on faulty and slow-speed electricity meters.