Govt to end slab system punishing consumers crossing 200-unit threshold

Government announces end to electricity slab system penalizing high consumers

ISLAMABAD: Power Minister Awais Leghari informed the Senate on Tuesday that the administration has opted to discontinue the electricity slab system, which imposes higher costs on consumers exceeding the 200-unit threshold. The current mechanism imposes a subsidy of approximately Rs13 per unit for those using up to 200 units monthly, but any excess consumption by even a single unit results in a tariff of up to Rs33 per unit and a six-month ban on the protected category benefit. Leghari stated that expediting the abolition of this system was a priority.

The senator, PML-N Senator Abid Sher Ali, questioned the fairness of the system during his calling-attention notice, highlighting that increasing monthly consumption from 200 to 201 units raised the tariff from Rs15 to Rs30 per unit, effectively trapping consumers in the 400-unit slab for just an extra unit. The minister acknowledged this issue, offering two potential solutions: raising the threshold to 250 units or eliminating the six-month penalty by allowing consumers to regain protected status if they reduce consumption to 200 units in a given month.

The government is exploring a new system based on income rather than consumption, noting that the number of protected consumers has risen from 10 million to 20-25 million in the past two years, partly due to solar energy adoption. However, the minister emphasized that offering equal discounts to all consumers using less than 200 units would not be appropriate, as the new mechanism would target subsidies to those living below the poverty line and lower-middle income groups.

He also mentioned that the power sector's circular debt had declined to around Rs1.67 trillion and aimed to eliminate it within four years.