Electricity prices have been increased at both consumer and wholesale levels. At the consumer level, prices have been raised by an average of 16.68 per cent, while wholesale prices have increased by 19.85 per cent.

At the consumer level, the tariff has been increased by Tk 1.52 per kilowatt-hour, raising the rate from Tk 9.11 to Tk 10.63. At the wholesale level, prices have been increased by Tk 1.39 per kilowatt-hour, from Tk 7 to Tk 8.39.

The new rates were announced by the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) at a press briefing on Wednesday (June 3) at its hearing room on the sixth floor of the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) building in Ramna, Dhaka.

Earlier, BERC held a two-day public hearing on May 20 and 21 on proposals to raise electricity tariffs. During the hearing, six power distribution companies proposed tariff increases ranging from Tk 0.85 to Tk 2.05 per unit.

According to the proposals, the Power Development Board (PDB) sought an increase of Tk 0.85 per unit, the Rural Electrification Board (REB) Tk 1.77, DPDC Tk 1.54, DESCO Tk 1.98, West Zone Power Distribution Company (WZPDCL) Tk 1.39, and North-West Power Generation Company (NESCO) Tk 2.05 per unit.

However, BERC’s technical committee recommended that the average tariff increase for distribution companies should be Tk 1.25 per unit. Previously, in February 2024, the wholesale electricity price was increased by executive order from Tk 6.70 to Tk 7.04 per unit.