ASIFUR RAHMAN
Electricity consumers are set to face higher bills as the government considers combining tariff hikes with the restructuring of residential billing slabs in a move that could sharply raise costs for middle-range users.
The Power Development Board (PDB) has proposed increasing wholesale prices by 17–21 percent, citing rising fuel import costs, capacity charges for idle plants, and mounting operational losses of distributors.
All six distribution companies, along with the transmission operator, have submitted proposals to the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC), seeking retail tariff hikes of 15–29 percent across different slabs.
If approved, the changes would affect most of the country’s 4.95 crore electricity customers, already burdened by higher fuel oil, LPG, and commodity prices.
The distributors together lost Tk 2,638 crore in FY2024-25 under the current tariff structure and project losses exceeding Tk 3,800 crore in FY26 without adjustments. Most of them sought a revision of pricing to reduce the gap, effective from June 1.
Documents reviewed by The Daily Star show they want to pass not only higher wholesale and transmission costs but also their own operational expenditures and accumulated deficits to end users.
Public hearings on the wholesale and retail tariff proposals are scheduled for May 20 and 21 at the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh auditorium in Dhaka.
SLAB RESTRUCTURING
PDB’s proposals include redefining residential slabs, which could significantly increase bills for lower-middle and middle-income households consuming up to 200 kilowatt-hours (kWh) monthly.
Currently, lifeline users consuming up to 50 kWh and those using up to 75 kWh enjoy lower rates. Consumers using up to 200 units also enjoy the lower rate for the first 75 kWh.
PDB now seeks to abolish that benefit for the consumers using up to 200 units. This means a household consuming 76-200 kWh would pay the higher rate for all usage; there will be no lower rate for them for the first 75 kWh.
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