Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has said that reduction in the tariff from seventy rupees to forty rupees for Electric Vehicles is a good and welcoming initiative.
Speaking at a high level meeting in Islamabad today (Wednesday) regarding promoting the culture of using Electric Vehicles in the country, he said it will also help save foreign exchange in terms of import of fuel for domestic consumption and lessen climate change impacts.
The Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Power to continue work on promoting culture of using Electric Vehicles and launch a special campaign to create awareness among the masses in this connection.
Shehbaz Sharif said the world is much concerned over hazardous effects of climate change. He said there is also need to address the commercial aspect of the electricity tariff for Electric Vehicles.
Federal Minister for Energy Sardar Awais Ahmad Laghari Wednesday said that power division has reduced 45 percent power tariff for electric vehicle charging stations and now charging stations will get Rs. 39.70 per unit from the current Rs. 71 per unit.
Addressing at a press conference the minister said that regulations related to electric vehicle charging stations will also be implemented and registration and business will be allowed within 15 days.
He said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, a special concessional electricity rate was announced today for electric vehicle charging stations.
The special concessional electricity rate for charging stations has been reduced from the current Rs. 71 per unit to Rs. 39.70 per unit. Thus, for the first time in the history of the country, the per unit electricity price for electric vehicles has been reduced by 44 percent.
Along with this, regulations related to the establishment of the first electric vehicle charging stations and battery replacement points in the history of the country have also been implemented. These regulations have been implemented under the National Energy Conservation Authority, an institution of the Power Division, for which a regular gazette notification has also been issued.
The circular debt decreased to 12 billion rupees, reaching 2,381 billion rupees for the period from July to November 2024 as the debt was 2,393 billion rupees on June 30, 2024.
The minister highlighted that the recovery rate for the period from July to November 2024 has reached 96%, significantly improving compared to the same period in 2023 due to the prudent policies of the government.
Meanwhile, the minister also revealed that the power division proposed revised agreements with eighteen more Independent Power Producers (IPPs) before the federal cabinet.
The Cabinet Committee on Energy approved the Power Division’s summary, granting permission for a single-point power supply to Industrial States and Special Industrial Zones beside authorizing their management for giving connection, bill collection, and other related matters.
The decision was made to address complaints from industrial zones and special industrial zones regarding the new connections and billing process, said a press release.
In this regard, a mechanism is also being developed, which would be implemented by the Power Division in the next two to three months.
The minister stated that the power sector has begun to reap the benefits of the steps taken by the Power Division.
