The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has increased electricity price by 6.69 percent to Tk 6.15 per unit on an average from existing Tk 5.75 per unit The new price will be effective from March 1 in retrospective.
Chairman of the BERC AR Khan announced the new rates through a media briefing at BERC office in the city.
His announcement came in the backdrop of sharp opposition to the proposal by from all sections of the people. But the ERC acted on pressure of the government, albeit holding a ‘fake’ public hearing to give the decision a touch of consultation with stakeholders.
Experts said the new price hike which is the seventh time in the hand of the Awami League government over the past several years will affect the poor marginalized people more than the rich.
It will moreover affect industry and household severely, besides leaving negative impact on the national economy.
They also said the power sector is the victim of ruling party politics in which the government is patronizing the rental and quick rental power plants passing the load of higher power tariff on the users at successive interval.
They said that the government had pledged to reduce power tariff from this year but the new hike again showed it is giving incentive to the sponsors of the rental and quick rental power plants ignoring broader national interest.
The power tariff for agriculture remained unchanged at Tk 3.39 in REB (Rural Electrification Board) areas and Tk 2.51 elsewhere.
Among the five distribution companies, the Power Development Board (PDB) sought 15.50 percent hike while DPDC 23.50 percent, Desco 15.90 percent, REB 12.58 percent, and WZPDC 8.59 percent hike.
However, a technical evaluation committee recommended 3-7 percent considering the case separately for each of the companies.
A new tariff structure was introduced for the lifeline people fixing a limit up to 50 unit consumption for residential purpose which will pay Tk 3.33-3.74 each unit price.
Besides, the other residential consumers using up to 75 units will pay Tk 3.87 per unit (for REB) and Tk 3.53 (for other operators) instead of the existing tariff of Tk 3.33 per unit.
The second-tire residential consumer using 76-200 units will pay Tk 5.01 per unit instead of the existing Tk 4.73 while the third-tire consumers using 201-300 units will pay Tk 5.19 per unit instead of Tk 4.83.
The fourth-tire consumers using 301-400 units will pay Tk Tk 5.42 instead of Tk 4.93 per unit, while fifth tire consumers using 401-600 units will pay Tk 8.51 per unit instead of Tk 7.98, the sixth tire consumer using over 600 units will pay Tk 9.93 instead of Tk 9.38 per unit.
Small industries will pay Tk 7.42 instead of Tk 6.95 per unit in the flat rate while Tk 6.64 during the off-peak hours and Tk 9 for the peak-hour use.
The commercial user will pay Tk 9.58 per unit instead of Tk 9 in the flat rate. They will pay Tk 8.16 during the off-peak hours and Tk 11.58 during the peak hours.
The consumers of 11-kV industries will pay Tk 7.32 instead of Tk 6.81.
The service organisations like hospitals and schools will pay Tk 4.58 instead of Tk 4.53 per unit while Tk 6.93 will be charged for streetlights and water pump instead of Tk 6.48 per unit.
The ruling Awami League government hiked power tariff six times in its previous tenure.
Terming the hike ‘unjust,’ Prof Shamsul Alam, energy adviser, Consumer Association of Bangladesh (CAB) told The New Nation yesterday that the energy regulator has hiked a higher electricity tariff for the marginal and industrial consumers whereas they intended for a lower tariff for the rich residential consumers.
The energy regulator has adopted two policies one for the poor and other for the affluent and it is contradictory to our constitution, he said, adding, by doing this the government has failed to safeguard interests of the marginal consumers which would have a sorrowful impact on their living standard.
Prof Shamsul Alam further said, the consumers of are supposed to pay more due to repeated price hike of energy and power but they do not get smooth and uninterrupted supply of electricity, which is very unfortunate.
“Further increase in power tariffs will have a huge negative impact on the national economy, which is now under inflationary pressure,” said Prof Mustafizur Rahman, Executive Director of Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
He said, the hike in electricity prices would have an obvious impact on industry as it would raise cost of both industrial production, further creating inflationary pressure on the economy.
Prof Mustafizur Rahman, however, said that the government had no second option than to raising power prices again. It was inevitable to reduce the government’s huge financial burden resulting from power purchase from the costly rental power plants.
The industrial sector is passing through a critical time taking a heat from the recent political turmoil. The latest hike in electricity prices will further disturb the ailing industries,” said Abdus Salam Murshedy, President of Exporters Association of Bangladesh (EAB).
He said, the export-oriented industries, which are already hard hit by high input costs and global recession, would become more vulnerable as power tariff hike will affect competitiveness of local products in the international market.
“The higher cost of production owing to abrupt increased in power would eventually lead to cut in export orders,” Murshedy added.
