President of the Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI), Muhammad Ikram Rajput, has demanded the immediate abolition of cross-subsidy included in electricity tariffs for industries, stating that an additional cost of Rs4.5 to Rs7 per unit is continuously rendering industries inefficient and unviable.
He said that industries are already facing high production costs, weak demand, and financial pressure, and under such circumstances, the nearly 20 percent additional burden in the form of cross-subsidy has made it difficult for many industrial units to even continue normal business operations.
Muhammad Ikram Rajput questioned that if, according to the Ministry of Energy, the performance of the power sector has improved, it is incomprehensible why a competitive electricity tariff of around 9 cents per unit for industries has not been made possible. If the sector is truly stable, he asked, why are the benefits not being directly passed on to industrial consumers?
The KATI president emphasized that without affordable and competitive electricity, neither an increase in exports nor the creation of sustainable employment opportunities is possible. He said the Prime Minister’s goal of boosting exports and eventually exiting the IMF program cannot be achieved as long as industries continue to bear the burden of policies that have no connection with their actual consumption or performance.
Muhammad Ikram Rajput also expressed concern over the design of the current three-year incremental consumption package, noting that while the previous winter package provided overall relief to industries, the current scheme has limited this facility. As a result, many industrial units have been deprived of its benefits, particularly those whose electricity consumption was higher between December 2023 and November 2024.
He further stated that the load factors imposed by the Power Division have no clear technical or regulatory justification in a concessionary package whose primary objective is to increase electricity demand. These benchmarks appear to have been derived from mechanisms designed to curb power theft and detect billing irregularities, rendering the package ineffective instead of demand-enhancing. Rather than encouraging additional consumption, the scheme risks merely shifting demand within the industrial sector.
The KATI president urged Federal Minister for Energy (Power Division) Sardar Awais Leghari to immediately abolish cross-subsidy in electricity bills for industries and to review the incremental consumption package so that it can genuinely contribute to increased industrial activity.
He concluded by saying that the future of industry, export competitiveness, and overall economic recovery are directly dependent on fair, transparent, and reasonable electricity pricing.
