Power tariff rises by 16.68pc from June
Electricity prices have been increased in the shortest possible time through a fast-tracked process with bulk prices raised by 19.85 per cent.
At the consumer level, electricity prices have increased by an average of 16.68 per cent, while transmission charges have been raised by 23.96 per cent.
Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) announced the new tariffs at a press conference today, Wednesday.
According to the announcement, among consumers in different categories (slabs), the increase ranges from a minimum of 15 per cent to a maximum of 19.94 per cent. The new rates will take effect from June.
Responding to a question about the hurried price hike, BERC Chairman Jalal Ahmed said there had been no pressure. He said the decision was made quickly with the national budget in mind.
Replying to another query, he acknowledged that the price increase would raise people's expenses. However, no economic impact assessment had been conducted. There is scope for carrying out such an assessment, he added.
Under existing arrangements, the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) purchases electricity from all public and private power plants at contractually agreed prices. It then sells the electricity to six distribution companies at government-determined wholesale rates, which are somewhat lower than the production cost.
To cover the resulting deficit, BPDB receives government subsidies. The distribution companies, however, receive no subsidies and operate by selling electricity to consumers at retail rates.
According to the BERC order, the average wholesale electricity tariff has been increased from Tk 7.00 per unit to Tk 8.39 per unit. At the retail level, the average tariff has risen from Tk 9.11 per unit to Tk 10.63 per unit.
Meanwhile, the average transmission charge has been increased from 31 paisa per unit to nearly 39 paisa per unit.
Power Grid Company Bangladesh (PGCB), the country's sole electricity transmission company, had sought to raise transmission charges from 30 and 31 paisa per unit to 48 and 49 paisa respectively.
The BPDB had proposed increasing bulk power tariffs by Tk 1.20 per unit (17 per cent) to Tk 1.50 per unit (21 per cent). In its application, BPDB stated that the projected cost of electricity generation in fiscal year 2026–27 would be over Tk 1.43 trillion. The average generation cost per unit of electricity is estimated at about Tk 12.91.
BERC held public hearings on 20 and 21 May regarding the proposed electricity price increase.
The most recent electricity tariff hike before this came on 29 February 2024, through an executive order, when retail electricity prices were increased by 8.5 per cent. At the same time, the wholesale tariff was raised by 5 per cent, from Tk 6.70 per unit to Tk 7.04 per unit.