The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has completed its hearing on the Central Power Purchasing Agency’s (CPPA) request for monthly fuel adjustment, indicating a potential reduction of Rs1.03 per unit in electricity prices for one month.
The proceedings, chaired by Nepra Chairman Waseem Mukhtar, revealed that a final decision would be issued after evaluating the presented data.
CPPA officials briefed the authority, stating that “Power plants operated as per the merit order in December.”
According to the CPPA, fuel costs remained low during December, contributing to the proposed reduction. They further noted, “Had the Neelum Jhelum Power Project been operational, the public would have benefited even more.”
The briefing also revealed that under the winter package, electricity demand increased by 1.5%, leading to an additional 180 million units consumed by the public. During the session, consumers raised questions regarding the compensation of CPPA’s financial losses.
A consumer asked, “How are CPPA’s losses covered?”
Nepra officials responded that CPPA’s financial losses, which were 2.44% in December, instead of the projected 2.63%, were not passed on to consumers.
However, consumers further questioned, “If this money is not collected from the public, then where does it come from?”
CPPA representatives clarified, “The organization covers its losses from its own profits.” A consumer inquired, “What is the profit margin that allows the CPPA to cover losses amounting to billions of rupees?”
