K-Electric seeks Rs0.51 per unit hike for August under FCA

ISLAMABAD: K-Electric has requested Nepra to allow it an additional collection of Rs0.51 per unit from its power consumers on account of monthly Fuel Charges Adjustment (FCA) for August 2024.

In a petition filed with Nepra, K-Electric sought permission to recover R853 million under FCA mechanism, based on interim reference tariff set in March 2023.

The company claims it charged the customers less for fuel costs in August, and now needs to recoup those funds.

Nepra has scheduled a public hearing on the matter on October 3. If approved, consumers will see the increase reflected in their December or January bills. The additional charge, combined with an 18pc GST, would result in a total impact of Rs1.0 billion for K-Electric customers.

Over the past two years, rising costs of imported fuel have led to frequent FCA hikes, which are passed on to consumers on a monthly basis. Under the current tariff structure, these fuel costs are adjusted monthly, while other costs, such as power purchase price and transmission losses,

are included in base tariff set by the federal government on a quarterly basis.

The regulator earlier granted K-Electric an extra collection of Rs2.5934 per unit in October and Rs3.1688 per unit in November bills. These increases are on account of May and June 2024 FCAs.