Federal cabinet approves relief for electricity consumers

ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet on Friday approved a decision of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) to provide relief to consumers of electricity distribution companies regarding the Off-Grid (Captive Power Plant) Levy.

The decision was taken during a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the Prime Minister’s House.

Addressing the meeting, the prime minister said the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) recorded encouraging growth in the first quarter (July–September) of the current fiscal year, adding that the government had steered the economy away from the brink of default towards stability.

He emphasised that soon after assuming the charge, the incumbent government had resolved that loss-making state-owned enterprises would be privatised. “The privatisation of PIA is an extremely important milestone in this regard.”

Furthermore, he described his recent meetings with the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as extremely beneficial in the context of bilateral relations and mutual consultation.

The prime minister further said that a day earlier, he had a pleasant telephone conversation with Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, in which satisfaction was expressed over the pace of economic and strategic relations between the two countries.

The prime minister said that discussions were also held regarding further broadening the relations.

The cabinet endorsed the decisions made in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee for Legislative Cases on December 30, 2025, including the confirmation of action regarding the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025.

The cabinet also approved the decisions made by the Economic Coordination Committee on August 26, 2025, including the decision on providing relief to consumers of electricity distribution companies concerning the Off-Grid (Captive Power Plant) Levy and formulating a strategy in this regard.

The cabinet approved action for the issuance of a Presidential Ordinance to amend the Off-Grid (Captive Power Plants) Levy Act 2025, regarding the sale of gas to off-grid captive power plants by a Third Party, on the recommendation of the Petroleum Division.