An explosive audit report by the Auditor General of Pakistan has uncovered that eight electricity distribution companies (Discos) overbilled consumers by Rs244 billion, further squeezing households already struggling with rising energy costs.
The audit accuses Iesco, Lesco, Hesco, Mepco, Pesco, Qesco, Sepco, and Tesco of systematically inflating bills to hide inefficiencies, electricity theft, and massive line losses.
Shockingly, in just one month, five of these companies overcharged 278,649 consumers by Rs47.8 billion, while during the 2023–24 financial year, over 900 million extra units were billed with no accountability for the officials responsible.
Qesco emerged as the biggest offender, allegedly inflating tube well bills for agricultural consumers by Rs148 billion to mask its poor performance. Another Rs22 billion was wrongly charged under the pretext of “adjusting load” to cover technical losses.
The report also flagged 1,432 feeders used to generate Rs18.6 billion in fake billing, while requests for records from the companies were ignored.
Although some refunds were made — including Rs5.29 billion for wrong meter readings and Rs2.18 billion in Pesco credit adjustments — auditors found no evidence of proper restitution for the majority of consumers.
Audit officials have now sought explanations from all eight Discos, raising concerns over systemic corruption and lack of oversight in the power sector.
