ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): Pakistani households and industries could see their electricity bills rise next year after the national power regulator started reviewing a price hike proposal for the country’s power purchase rate for the fiscal year 2026 that would increase energy costs across all sectors.
The Central Power Purchasing Agency, during a public hearing, proposed fixing the national power purchase price in the range of Rs 25.69-26.69 per unit.
The power purchase price is one of the important benchmarks that determine consumer tariffs across the country.
Businesses are warning that approval of the proposed range will tie Pakistan to another expensive year of electricity and further slow down industrial growth.
The hearing was presided over by Nepra Chairman Wasim Mukhtar, while CPPA officials justified the proposed price on the basis of its electricity demand forecast, anticipated fuel price, and assumptions about the U.S. dollar exchange rate.
However, Member Nepra Rafiq Ahmed Sheikh criticized the submission as incomplete and questioned the reliability of the data underpinning the proposal. Nepra officials said the regulator would engage with industry stakeholders before finalizing the rate.
Rehan Javed, who represents the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said that the figures suggest “electricity would not become cheaper,” warning that consistently high power costs are eroding industrial competitiveness.
Tanveer Bari of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry urged Nepra not to “inflate” its exchange-rate assumptions, underscoring the fact that even a slight depreciation of the rupee significantly raises the cost of power generation.
NEPRA will continue considering the CPPA application in the coming weeks, with a final decision on the national power purchase price for FY2026 expected later this year.
