Pakistan's Distribution Companies Seek Rs415 Billion in Prior-Year Costs; IESCO Asks for 38% of It

Pakistan's ten state distribution companies have asked NEPRA for Rs415.3 billion in prior-year adjustments for calendar year 2027, according to the regulator's hearing notices. IESCO's request of Rs157.9 billion is 38% of the total and about twice its own requested distribution and supply margin. Hearings ran from 13 to 15 October.

By TEI's calculation from IESCO's petition, Rs77.8 billion of the claim, or 49%, is supplemental charges and pension remeasurement losses of the kind NEPRA refused in its June 2025 decision on the company's previous request. That year IESCO asked for Rs41.7 billion and was allowed Rs6.1 billion. The supplemental charges for FY2022-23 and FY2023-24 are now claimed gross, at Rs17.5 billion, against Rs9.5 billion claimed net of late payment surcharge last time.

IESCO says it recognised these costs after correspondence from the Ministries of Privatisation and Energy tied to its place in the first privatisation batch. FESCO and GEPCO, the other two companies in that batch, cite similar instructions and together claim Rs15.5 billion of supplemental charges.

The full IESCO request works out to Rs13.17 per unit of its projected sales, against Rs3.78 for FESCO and Rs1.46 for GEPCO. Spread over all the energy CPPA-G expects to supply the ten companies in 2027, the ten requests equal Rs3.19 per unit. NEPRA has not yet issued its determinations.