Stakeholders urge BERC to reform power sector instead of raising tariffs

Stakeholders at a public hearing have opposed proposals to increase retail electricity prices, urging the state regulator to focus on trimming institutional costs and rooting out corruption rather than squeezing consumers further.

On the final day of the two-day public consultation organised by the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) at the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh, power sector experts, left-leaning politicians, and business leaders argued that the energy sector should be treated as a cost-to-cost public service rather than a profit-making enterprise.

They demanded that the financial fallout from capacity charges, high system losses, and inflated project costs no longer be passed on to everyday citizens.

During the session, six state-owned power distribution utilities presented their respective proposals to adjust retail tariffs.

According to the BERC Technical Evaluation Committee, the distribution companies proposed increasing their per-unit distribution margins by up to Tk 2.05 per unit.

NESCO sought the highest hike at Tk 2.05 per unit, followed by DESCO at Tk 1.98 and REB at Tk 1.77. DPDC proposed a hike of Tk 1.54 per unit, while WZPDCO sought an increase of Tk 1.39. PDB proposed the lowest increase at Tk 0.85 per unit.