Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim calls a special government meeting to consider immediate relief measures for households affected by higher electricity bills.
PETALING JAYA: The government will move swiftly to address concerns over higher electricity bills, with a special meeting tomorrow to consider immediate measures to cushion the impact on affected households.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the meeting would bring together the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation (PETRA), Energy Commission (ST), Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF).
The meeting comes amid public concerns over unusually high electricity bills, particularly among households whose monthly consumption has exceeded the 600 kilowatt-hours (kWh) threshold.
Anwar, who recently returned from India and the Maldives, said his immediate attention was on the concerns raised by the public.
“I have heard the concerns raised, and this matter must be given due attention and addressed immediately,” he said in a statement today.
He said the government would maintain its targeted subsidy approach to protect the majority of domestic consumers.
About 80% of domestic users consuming no more than 600kWh a month remained protected and were not affected by higher tariff rates arising from increased fuel costs this year, he said.
However, Anwar said haze conditions and warmer weather in recent weeks had contributed to higher electricity consumption among some households.
As a result, some households had exceeded the 600kWh monthly threshold and become subject to the Automatic Fuel Cost Adjustment (AFA).
Anwar said tomorrow’s meeting would focus on immediate mitigation measures to reduce the impact of higher electricity bills on affected households.
“The Madani Government will continue to ensure that every targeted subsidy measure is implemented fairly and reasonably, with the interests and well-being of the people remaining the priority,” he said.
TNB had previously clarified that the AFA was not a sudden increase in electricity tariffs, but a two-way mechanism that adjusts electricity charges based on changes in fuel costs and foreign exchange rates.
The national utility company said consumers received AFA rebates for nine consecutive months from August 2025 to April 2026 when global fuel costs were lower.
However, it said a surcharge had been imposed from May 2026 following an increase in global fuel costs amid the conflict in the Middle East.
The AFA surcharge for September stood at 3.67 sen per kWh, it said.
TNB said the mechanism operated in both directions, with savings passed on to consumers when fuel costs fell, while higher costs were reflected through a surcharge when fuel costs increased.
