The industrial sector in Pakistan pays nearly twice the costs of electricity compared to China, India and the United States, which puts its competitiveness in exporting in an unfavorable position.
A report issued by the International Energy Agency (IEA) shows that the power tariff for intense energy industries in Pakistan reached an average of 13.5 cents per kilowatt hour (kilowattou) in 2024, exceeding those in the main economies and even exceeding rates in the European Union.
the Electricity 2025 – Analysis and expectations up to 2027 A Paris -based IEA report states that industrial electricity prices in 2024 amounted to 6.3 cents per kilowatt hour in the United States and India, 7.7 cents in China, and 11.5 cents in the European Union. In Norway, a main European market, rates of up to 4.7 cents per kilowatt hour.
Although Pakistan is not covered in the report due to its non -member situation in IEA, the data highlights how the energy costs of the industries that operate inside the country and export them abroad.
The report also discusses industrial conflicts in Europe due to energy costs, noting that the cancellation of the industry is accelerating with the transfer of manufacturers to the cheapest electricity areas.
The report pointed out that “the high prices of electricity in undermining the competitiveness of intensive industries for European energy,” adding that the average energy tariff in the European Union for Industries was still 65 percent higher in 2024 than 2019, despite a modest decrease of 5 percent from the previous year.
According to IEA, global demand for electricity rises rapidly, as consumption is expected to grow at an annual rate of about 4 percent until 2027.
In 2024 alone, the demand increased by 4.3 percent, driven by industrial production, air conditioning, electricity, and expansion of the data center. Over the next three years, the total global electricity consumption is expected to increase by 3500 hours of TERWATT, which is equivalent to adding annual energy consumption in Japan every year.
China and India will represent most of this increase. In 2024, the demand for electricity in China grew by 7 percent, the trend expected to continue with an average annual rate of 6 percent to 2027. It is expected that the demand for electricity in India will rise faster at 6.3 percent annually, which exceeds its average long -term growth from 5 percent of 2015 to 2024.
The electricity share is expanding in the total energy consumption worldwide, as China tops 28 percent, compared to 22 percent in the United States and 21 percent in the European Union. Since 2020, the demand for electricity in China has grown faster than its economy, reflecting the rapid adoption of electricity through industries and families.
