The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) is scheduled to announce its official decision on proposals to readjust electricity tariffs at the wholesale, transmission and retail levels today.
In a notice issued yesterday, the Commission said the decision would be made public through a press briefing at 3pm at its office. According to insiders, BERC is expected to announce an increase of about 19 per cent at the wholesale level and between 15 and 20 per cent at the retail level.
BERC Chairman Jalal Ahmed hinted that tariffs for all categories of consumers - from irrigation and industry to lifeline users - would be increased, with the new rates taking effect from June 1.
However, he declined to comment on the extent of the increase.
If approved, this will be the first time BERC has raised electricity prices across all consumer categories simultaneously. The last electricity tariff hike was made through an executive order on February 29, 2024, when the average wholesale tariff was increased from Tk 6.70 to Tk 7.04 per unit.
The highest recorded increase came in 2011, when wholesale tariffs rose by 21.46 per cent and consumer-level tariffs by 14.16 per cent.
In its submission to BERC, the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) projected that electricity generation costs in fiscal year 2026-27 would reach about Tk 143,108 crore, with the average generation cost standing at Tk 12.91 per unit.
At the existing wholesale tariff, BPDB estimates revenue of Tk 77,553 crore, leaving a projected deficit of Tk 65,555 crore.
According to the submission, increasing the tariff by Tk 1.20 per unit, or about 17 per cent, would reduce the deficit by Tk 1,329 crore, while a Tk 1.50 increase, equivalent to about 21 per cent, would reduce the deficit by Tk 1,666 crore.
According to BPDB data, the average cost of electricity generation was Tk 2.13 per unit in fiscal year 2019-20, Tk 3.16 in 2020-21 and around Tk 8.5 in 2022. The current average generation cost is about Tk 13 per unit.
The increase in fuel prices and the depreciation of the taka against the US dollar have been cited as the main reasons behind the rising generation costs.
However, critics blame corruption, irregularities, unfavourable contracts and mismanagement in the power sector.
