Govt plans income-based electricity subsidies, 250-unit limit under review

Power Minister Awais Leghari told the Senate that circular debt in the power sector had fallen to below Rs1.67 trillion from around Rs2.07tr. He said the government had reorganised Rs1.2 trillion of debt financing, with the Rs3.23 per-unit Debt Servicing Surcharge expected to end over four years and the remaining debt to be cleared in that period.

Annual losses at distribution companies are projected at Rs325bn this year, down from Rs360bn last year and Rs591bn in 2024, while Power Division budget support is expected to drop to around Rs750bn from Rs1.18tr. Leghari said consumers had not received a matching reduction in electricity prices. The government is developing income-based subsidies for people below the poverty line and lower-middle-income households, and is considering raising the protected-consumer threshold from 200 to 250 units; detailed work is expected to take one to one and a half months.