Anisul Islam Noor :The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) has received huge complaints of ghost electricity bills in the recent months in Dhaka city and all over the country.Following the allegation, the BERC has decided to introduce a uniform billing format for the power distribution utilities to stop extra billing, citing adjustment of system losses. ‘The commission is now preparing the uniform billing format as it has received a number of allegations against the power utilities that they realise extra money from the consumers, citing adjustment of system losses,’ a commission official said. When asked, the official said that the power utilities did not adjust their system losses as the commission had already adjusted the tariff considering the system losses. The commission announced the decision in its detailed order during the latest round of power price hike. In its order, the commission asked the power distribution utilities to stop realising additional money from the consumers by over billing in a bid to adjust system losses.The utilities will have to use the new format in preparing bills for power consumers, the order said. In the same order, the commission, has however, allowed the power distribution utilities to use their current format of billing until it introduces the new one. The commission official said that there would be no option in the new billing format for ‘system loss adjustment’ and the power utilities would not have any scope for realising additional money from the consumers. The power utilities might realise some extra money for system loss adjustment only from the consumers who established transformers to receive electricity from 11kV line. It is because there is some system loss occurs at the transformers, BERC official explained, adding that only large-scale industries and very few commercial establishments receive electricity from 11kV line.
