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ISLAMABAD: The ECC approved a power surcharge of up to Rs3.82 per unit from March to June 2023 on Wednesday. In order to implement another tough condition imposed by the IMF for reviving the stalled IMF programme, a power surcharge of Rs2.63 per unit will be charged to power consumers in the next fiscal year 2023-24. This power surcharge will also be applied to K-Electric customers.
It also approved a wheat procurement price of Rs3,900 per 40 kg and an Rs5 billion Ramazan Relief package via the Utility Stores Corporation. It also permitted the waiver of storage charges on containers that had become stuck due to the non-retirement of LCs and forex remittances.
Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister of Finance and Revenue, presided over the Cabinet’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) meeting on Wednesday.
The ECC considered a summary tabled by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research on the procurement price of wheat crop 2022-23 and after detailed discussion approved a uniform procurement price of wheat crop 2022-23 at Rs3,900/40 kg.
Sindh, on the other hand, had announced a wheat support price of Rs4,000/40kg, while Punjab had announced a price of Rs3,900/40kg.
Simultaneously, the Trading Corporation of Pakistan reported that the price of imported wheat was Rs4,500 to Rs5,000/40kg, including inland transportation and PASSCO incidentals.
Wheat was available for Rs4,359/40kg in Punjab on February 23, Rs3,825/40kg in Sindh, Rs4,198/40kg in KPK, and Rs5,109/40kg in Balochistan, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
The Ministry of Industries and Production provided a synopsis of the Ramzan Relief Package for the Utility Stores Corporation 2023. In addition, the ECC approved an Rs5 billion Ramazan Relief Package based on a hybrid model of targeted and untargeted subsidies. The package would include 19 items available from the Utility Stores Corporation.
The ECC reviewed a summary provided by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and approved the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) Board resolution on waiving all storage charges on stuck-up containers/cargo held up at Karachi Port due to non-retirement of Letters of Credit and remittances of Foreign Exchange. However, if the demurrage charges exceed Rs5 million, the KPT must seek certification from the SBP before granting the waiver. The ECC also directed that a monthly report on the magnitude and amount of cleared consignments be submitted.
The ECC approved tariff rationalization for K-Electric through consumption adjustments from July 2022 to September 2022 and consumer recoveries from March 2023 to May 2023, respectively. It also approved an increase in the surcharge for the fiscal year 2024 to cover the federal government’s obligations to power producers. These surcharges will also be applied to K-Electric customers in FY24 in order to maintain uniform tariffs across the country. Residential consumers will see a tariff increase of Rs 1.55 per kWh in the second quarter of 2021-22, followed by another increase ranging from Rs 1.4 per kWh to Rs 4.45 per kWh in the first quarter of 2022-23, depending on unit usage.
