International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reportedly sought an increase in electricity tariff up to 7.50 rupees per unit across the board, to recover over Rs 700 billion from consumers as previous commitments made by the government were not met, well informed sources told Business Recorder.
An increase of Rs 7.91 per unit was agreed with the Fund and World Bank for last fiscal year but it was only partially implemented till July 1, 2022. IMF had also been assured that FPA and QTAs will be passed on to the consumers on time but their implementation had been delayed.
The sources said, IMF had been assured that recovery will be 93.83 percent, but in fact it remained less than 90 percent (FY-22 at 90.43 percent). Transmission and Distribution losses were greater than 17 percent (FY-22 at 22.16 percent) against the commitment of 15.83 percent, made with the IMF and World Bank.
Electricity demand remained depressed at 44 billion units during first quarter of current fiscal year (FY-22 at 44.4 percent) whereas IMF had been given the understanding of 45 billion units.
