National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) could be deprived of $300m worth of financing from various donor agencies which include International Monetary Fund, Japan International Cooperate Agency and the Asian Development Bank. This financing has to be extended to NEPRA by the end of this financial year which ends on 30th June.
According to sources, this is happening as a result of the proposed changes in the NEPRA Act 1997, which will curtail and reduce the powers of the regulatory authority which includes the provision of licences for transmission and distribution purposes and regulate the electricity tariff. In a letter written by the donor agencies to the Ministry of Water and Power it mentioned “Although improvements can be made in the implementation of the NEPRA Act, the independent regulator has been one of the strengths of the Pakistani power sector in attracting investors including ourselves.”
The government recently decided to curtail the powers of NEPRA which would empower them with the ability to impose additional surcharges aside the tariffs determined by the regulator. These changes threaten the independence of NEPRA and makes it vulnerable to political jockeying and influence.
