Govt incentive shields 85% of households from rising costs
PUTRAJAYA: There will be little change in the April electricity bill for some 85% of domestic households in the country despite the rising fuel cost due to the current global energy crisis, says the Energy Commission (ST).
This is because of the continued support of the Energy Efficiency Incentive (Insentif Cekap Tenaga) mechanism, which will help energy-efficient households cope amid rising fuel costs.
“Households using 600 kilowatt-hours (kWh) or less will remain neutral while for households consuming up to 1,000 kWh, rebates are given but on a reducing scale.
“That means 85% of domestic or household consumers will remain at the stable and neutral level in terms of their electricity bill impact,” ST chief executive officer Siti Safinah Salleh said at the ST Annual Regulatory Review 2026 press conference yesterday.
She added that this incentive also covers low voltage non-domestic consumers for consumption of up to 200kWh.
“These measures, we hope, will help to mitigate some of the expected inflationary impacts from the crisis that is currently happening,” she said.
On electricity rebates under the Automatic Fuel Adjustment (AFA), Siti Safinah rebates rose steadily as fuel costs eased, climbing from just over 1sen/kWh in August and September to a peak of nearly 9sen/kWh in November, before easing back to 6.42sen/kWh in December.
On March 31, Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) announced the April AFA rate reduced to at 0.47sen/kWh.
Domestic customers using 600kWh and below, roughly a RM216 bill, are excluded from the adjustment.
The AFA mechanism, introduced in July 2025 to replace the Imbalance Cost Pass‑Through (ICPT), directly reflects rebates in consumers’ bills based on fuel costs and rewards households and industries that practice energy saving.
On the country’s energy supply, Siti Safinah said it remains stable, particularly for electricity and gas, despite the current global fuel crisis.
She noted that about 80% of the natural gas used to generate power in the country is sourced domestically.
However, she said the country is not insulated from price increases, as 100% of coal for power generation is imported from several sources.
“Costs will rise from three factors: the market price of coal, shipping costs, and insurance. Although our increase may not be as significant as in other countries, there is still an increase,” she said.
Siti Safinah suggested that households consider adopting energy-efficient measures, including the installation of affordable solar panels, as a means to reduce electricity consumption.
She also noted that household electricity demand is likely to rise in the coming months due to the anticipated hotter climate, as more people will rely on air-conditioning to stay cool.
