MEPCO Fuel and Quarterly Adjustments (FPA and QTA)

Last checked 26 September 2026

The FPA (fuel price adjustment) on a MEPCO bill is a per-unit charge or refund that passes on the difference between the actual fuel cost of power generation and the fuel cost built into the tariff. September 2026 bills carry Rs 2.0581 a unit for July 2026, charged on July's units, plus a quarterly adjustment (QTA) of Rs 0.5194 a unit. This guide explains how NEPRA sets both, why the fuel line runs two months behind, who is exempt and how to check the amounts on your bill.

What is FPA on a MEPCO bill?

FPA is the fuel price adjustment: a per-unit amount that NEPRA sets every month for the gap between the actual and the reference fuel cost of electricity. NEPRA's decisions call the same item the fuel charges adjustment (FCA).

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) makes this adjustment under section 31(7) of the NEPRA Act, 1997, using the formula in the distribution companies' tariff determinations. Each month has its own reference fuel cost, set in advance: Rs 7.7138 a unit for June 2026 and Rs 7.0929 for July 2026. The actual cost is reported by the Central Power Purchasing Agency Guarantee Limited (CPPA-G), which bills the distribution companies for the power they buy. A higher actual cost gives a charge; a lower one gives a refund.

NEPRA sets one national average rate for consumers of all the former WAPDA distribution companies, so MEPCO applies the FPA on its bills but does not set it.

How NEPRA set the July 2026 FPA

CPPA-G filed its request on 13 August 2026, putting July's actual fuel cost at Rs 9.6112 a unit against the reference of Rs 7.0929 and asking for Rs 2.5182. NEPRA published the request, heard it in public on 27 August 2026 and decided on 4 September 2026.

At the hearing, CPPA-G pointed to a sharp rise in RLNG (regasified liquefied natural gas) prices after geopolitical developments, force majeure on contracted LNG supplies from Qatar, and a planned refuelling outage at the KANUPP-3 nuclear unit. NEPRA re-priced some plants at their approved fuel cost components, which removed Rs 2,038 million, among other adjustments. It then set July's actual cost at Rs 9.1511 and approved Rs 2.0581 a unit (S.R.O. 1499(I)/2026), Rs 0.4601 below the request. Subtracting the two rounded costs gives Rs 2.0582; the rate on bills is the Rs 2.0581 that NEPRA notified.

FPA and QTA rates on MEPCO bills now

The table lists the adjustments on bills being issued now. Each row is one NEPRA decision, with its rate per unit and the bills and units it applies to.

As of 26 September 2026, NEPRA had not decided the fuel adjustment for August 2026. A hearing notice NEPRA posted on 19 September 2026 shows that CPPA-G has asked for Rs 1.7267 a unit against August's reference of Rs 7.0998, with the public hearing set for 29 September 2026. Every 2026 decision so far has put a month's adjustment on the bills two months later, so the August figure is expected on October 2026 bills. The QTA stays at Rs 0.5194 a unit on October and November 2026 bills.

FPA month by month in 2026

Each row below is one NEPRA monthly decision: the fuel month, the approved rate per unit, the bills it was charged on and the date NEPRA decided it. A refund is marked as such.

March 2026 brought the only refund on the February to September 2026 bills, at about one paisa a unit. July 2026 carries the highest rate in the series so far.

Why is the FPA on a September bill based on July's units?

Because NEPRA can only set a month's fuel adjustment after that month is over and its actual fuel cost is known. The July 2026 adjustment passed through these steps before it reached bills:

1. 13 August 2026: CPPA-G filed the request with July's actual fuel cost.
2. 18 August 2026: NEPRA advertised the request and invited comments.
3. 27 August 2026: NEPRA held the public hearing.
4. 4 September 2026: NEPRA approved Rs 2.0581 a unit and issued the notification.
5. September 2026 bills: MEPCO shows the adjustment as a separate line, worked out on the units billed for July 2026.

NEPRA's order adds that if a September bill was issued before the notification, the adjustment may be applied in the following month. PITC's consumer awareness notice on the FPA makes the same point about timing: the amount is not linked to the current month's use and usually relates to use two or more months earlier.

The effect is easy to miss. A home that used 400 units in July 2026 pays 400 × Rs 2.0581 = Rs 823.24 as FPA on its September bill, before sales tax, even if it used far fewer units in September. Heavy summer months reach you again on the bills two months later.

What is QTA on a MEPCO bill?

QTA is the quarterly tariff adjustment: a flat per-unit charge or refund that NEPRA sets each quarter to settle the gap between the power purchase costs assumed in the tariff and the costs actually incurred.

The distribution companies file their claims after each quarter ends. NEPRA's decision of 4 September 2026 on April to June 2026 settles these costs:

• capacity charges paid to power plants;
• variable operation and maintenance costs;
• use of system charges and the market operator fee;
• the fuel cost of the distribution companies' own transmission and distribution losses, which the monthly FPA leaves out;
• recovery of the power purchase price on units sold under the incremental consumption package.

NEPRA approved Rs 12,669 million for all the former WAPDA companies together, well below the requests of about Rs 33 billion. Spread over the 24,394 million units expected to be billed from September to November 2026, excluding lifeline sales, that gives Rs 0.5194 a unit, charged at a flat rate on September, October and November 2026 bills.

The quarterly adjustment changes from quarter to quarter and can be a refund. The table shows the ones on 2026 bills so far: the bill months, the quarter each one settles, the rate per unit and the notification.

Why does the September 2026 bill have two adjustment lines?

Because two NEPRA decisions apply to it at once: the fuel adjustment for July 2026 at Rs 2.0581 a unit on July's units, and the quarterly adjustment of Rs 0.5194 a unit that runs from September to November.

The August bill also had two lines, but one of them was a refund. The quarterly refund of Rs 1.9857 a unit ended with August bills, and a charge took its place. The table compares the two bills per unit for a home that is not exempt.

For a home that used 300 units in every month, the adjustments came to a refund of Rs 370.62 on the August bill (Rs 225.09 charged, Rs 595.71 refunded) and a charge of Rs 773.25 on the September bill (Rs 617.43 plus Rs 155.82). That is Rs 1,143.87 more on the September bill for the same use, before sales tax. Check this swing before suspecting the meter.

Who pays the FPA and QTA?

Every MEPCO consumer pays both, protected homes included, except lifeline and prepaid consumers; EV charging stations skip the FPA, and units under the incremental consumption package skip the QTA. The table shows each group of consumers.

The incremental consumption package is the government's Rs 22.98 a unit rate for extra consumption by industrial and agricultural consumers. When the fuel adjustment was a refund, in March 2026, units under that package did not receive it.

Where do the FPA and QTA appear on your bill?

Both appear as separate lines among the bill's charges, apart from the cost of electricity. NEPRA orders the FPA to be shown separately, and NEPRA's Consumer Service Manual lists the fuel price adjustment (FPA) and quarterly tariff adjustment (QTA) among a bill's other charges.

Taxes are charged on them too. PITC's notice on the FPA says that general sales tax, income tax where it applies, and extra and further tax for industrial and commercial consumers all apply to the FPA amount, so the rupee effect is larger than units multiplied by the rate. See how sales tax and income tax work on a MEPCO bill, and for the full layout, how to read a MEPCO bill line by line.

How to check the FPA and QTA on your bill

1. Open the bill. View your MEPCO bill by reference number and find the two adjustment lines.
2. Find July's units. The billing history box lists the units billed in recent months; the MEPCO bill history guide shows where to look.
3. Check the FPA. Multiply July's units by Rs 2.0581. The result should match the FPA line before tax.
4. Check the QTA. Multiply this bill's units by Rs 0.5194.
5. Query a mismatch. If a line does not match, or appears on a lifeline or prepaid connection, ask MEPCO to correct the bill.

Can consumers object to an FPA?

Yes, before NEPRA decides it. NEPRA publishes each fuel adjustment request and invites interested or affected parties to raise written or oral objections at a public hearing, held at NEPRA Tower in Islamabad and online through Zoom.

Members of the public took part in the July 2026 hearing, and some asked NEPRA to apply fuel adjustments to future bills, as it does with quarterly adjustments. The next hearing, on the August 2026 request, is on 29 September 2026. Once a rate is decided it applies to every consumer who is not exempt, so a billing complaint can fix how it was applied to your bill, not the rate itself.

The base unit rates that these adjustments sit on are in the MEPCO tariff 2026 slabs and fixed charges. To see the current adjustments inside a full estimate, use the MEPCO bill calculator with this month's adjustments.

Sources: NEPRA decisions on the fuel charges adjustment for December 2025 to July 2026 (the latest dated 4 September 2026, notified as S.R.O. 1499(I)/2026); NEPRA decision of 4 September 2026 on the quarterly adjustment for April to June 2026, notified as S.R.O. 1501(I)/2026 on 7 September 2026; S.R.O. 459(I)/2026 and S.R.O. 953(I)/2026; NEPRA hearing notice on the fuel charges adjustment for August 2026 (posted 19 September 2026); NEPRA Consumer Service Manual as on 26 November 2025; PITC consumer awareness notice on the fuel price adjustment. Every decision is listed on NEPRA's MEPCO tariff page. Debt servicing surcharge: NEPRA decision of 30 March 2023 on the federal government's surcharge motion (rates by category, page 8); NEPRA decision of 7 September 2026 on use of system charges (paragraph 12); NEPRA decision of 9 December 2025 on the incremental consumption package (S.R.O. 2409(I)/2025); Sales Tax Act 1990, section 2(46)(i), FBR text updated to 2025-26. Checked 26 September 2026.