K-Electric seeks Rs6.62 per unit refund for May bills

ISLAMABAD: K-Electric, the power utility responsible for supplying electricity to Karachi, has submitted a petition to the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) seeking a permission to refund Rs6.62 per unit to its clients under the monthly fuel charges adjustment (FCA) for February 2025.

Notably, on account of January 2025 FCA, the authority on Thursday had asked K-Electric to refund Rs3.02 per unit to its clients in April’s bills.

The utility has requested a decrease of Rs6.62 per unit, citing lower fuel costs. If approved, the total financial impact of this adjustment would amount to Rs6.662 billion in relief for consumers. And it will be returned to consumers in their May 2025 bills.

The request, if accepted, would provide yet another round of relief to electricity consumers in Karachi, who have seen a series of rate fluctuations in recent months tied to changing fuel prices. Nepra has yet to announce a public hearing date on K-Electric’s February petition.

The proposed adjustment is part of a regular mechanism under which electricity prices are revised monthly to reflect changes in fuel and generation costs.

K-Electric’s electricity sales dropped eight percent in January 2025 compared to the same month last year, with industrial consumption falling by 8.3 percent, the sharpest decline across all segments.

The utility sourced 89 percent of its electricity from NTDC in January, with its own plants contributing just four percent and independent power producers supplying seven percent.

However, KE’s own generation cost stood at Rs23.83 per kWh — more than double NTDC’s rate of Rs11.15.