Performance standards for distribution companies notified

Dawn reported that the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has notified new performance standards for distribution companies, the first overhaul in about two decades. The Performance Standards (Distribution) Regulations 2026 replace the Discos Performance Rules 2005 and are designed to keep utilities accountable after they pass into private hands through the ongoing privatisation process. The regulator drafted them over nearly two years of consultation with stakeholders.

For the first time, distribution companies will have to compensate consumers and pay fines if they miss deadlines for restoring electricity after outages, replacing faulty meters, correcting voltage fluctuations or providing new connections. The standards also set clearer, measurable key performance indicators that will be used to judge each company's performance, which Dawn noted matters to prospective investors weighing the privatisation.

Complaint centres will be set up at circle level and feed into Disco management rather than depending only on the existing centralised network. Companies must also run consumer satisfaction surveys twice a year and set up Consumer Facilitation Applications for direct communication. Planned outages will require 48 hours' notice by text message, email or online channels, while unscheduled cuts hitting large industrial users and CPPs need 30 minutes' warning, and defence sites remain exempt from unilateral cuts.