Chairman NEPRA refuses to lift MDI fix charges
Lahore (MNP) Chairman National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) Tausif H. Farooqui has refused to lift MDI Fixed Charges which are being charged from the business community over meager allocation of load and even if the factory is closed, the industrialists have to pay fixed charges to DISCOs.
He said that the current account deficit is to be met by charging according to the allocation. The rate of energy is to be determine on the cost of production which is already very high because we depend on the imported fuels and due to the devaluation of currency, people have to bear expensive electricity.
He was speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry. LCCI President Kashif Anwar and Vice President Adnan Khalid Butt also spoke on the occasion while Executive Committee Members were present on the occasion.
Chairman NEPRA also called the working of cold storages as seasonal and told that the seasonal businesses can disconnect their electricity connections and reconnect when they need electricity but the cold storages are not a seasonal business, but they work throughout the year and met the need of vegetables, fruits and perishable items of the country.
LCCI President Kashif Anwar drew the attention of Chairman NEPRA towards the issue of MDI charges saying that a few months back, NEPRA has imposed Maximum Demand Indicator charges on all industrial and commercial consumers under which they are charged 50% of their sanctioned load. He said that electricity bill has to be paid without using the units. If they use electricity more than 50% of their allotted load, then they will pay the bill according to the units used instead of MDI charges. He said that this decision is badly affecting the business community whose industrial units are closed or work in their industry is done on a seasonal basis. We have also taken up this issue with the CEO of LESCO and he has assured all possible support to the business community in this regard.
Chairman NEPRA said that at the rate at which Discos are charging MDI charges, they are paying 10% more to Central Power Purchasing Agency Guarantee limited (CPPA-G). This is a very low price that they are charging.
He said that NEPRA has allowed the seasonal industry to disconnect and reconnect four times in a year without any charges to which the President Lahore Chamber Kashif Anwar said that notification of disconnection and reconnection should be issued so that we have some legal protection in this regard.
