KEY POINTS
- August bills waived for domestic consumers in declared flood zones
- Paid amounts to be refunded or adjusted to next bill
- IMF review mission to examine fiscal impact of relief
- Concerns over mismanagement if DISCOs alone decide eligibility
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Sunday that electricity bills for August 2025 will be waived for households in flood-affected areas, pledging the federal government would bear the financial burden as the country reels from widespread monsoon devastation.
Speaking in Lahore, he described the measure as a basic right of those displaced by the monsoon disaster, according to the local media.
Officials from the Power Division confirmed that distribution companies (DISCOs) have been ordered to stop the collection of August bills in inundated districts.
Federal Minister for Power Awais Leghari told The Express Tribune that refunds for those who already paid would be processed through adjustments in upcoming bills. However, commercial and industrial billing would be “temporarily postponed pending damage assessments.”
Provincial disaster management authorities are preparing household-level data to guide the waivers. Punjab and Sindh officials told Dawn that district reports of displacement and crop losses are being shared with the federal government so DISCOs can compile verified lists of eligible consumers.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said Islamabad had sought the International Monetary Fund’s consent for the measure, explaining to The Express Tribune that the relief would be aligned with the Extended Fund Facility targets and reviewed by the Fund’s upcoming mission.
Reuters reported that IMF staff have not objected to immediate relief but want detailed costing and transparency on fiscal space before sign-off.
Experts, however, cautioned about weak governance in distribution companies. A recent policy note by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics stated that leaving identification fully to DISCOs risked “exclusion errors, duplication and potential abuse” without strong oversight.
Energy analysts told Bloomberg that independent auditing and NDMA’s coordination would be needed to ensure the subsidy reaches only genuinely affected households.
Officials acknowledged that the waiver is currently limited to August bills and applies only to residential customers. Whether further relief will be offered if floods persist remains undecided.
The Prime Minister said details of fiscal costing and donor support would be announced once assessments are complete.
