News

TNB AFA October 2026: 3.61 sen/kWh, Your September 800 kWh Credit Lands This Month — and the Outlook Turns Up to 7.59 sen

October 2026's AFA is a surcharge of 3.61 sen/kWh (RM391 million) — a touch below September's 3.67 sen but above the 3.36 sen TNB had projected. The outlook has turned: November 2026 to January 2027 is now +4.27 to +7.59 sen. Households using up to 800 kWh still pay no AFA, RM10 retail charge or SST until 31 December, and TNB says September's share of that relief is credited on the October bill. Here is how to read the two new bill lines, what each usage level pays, and what January could cost.

Marcus Wong21 August 20269 min readUpdated 8 Oct 2026

> Quick view: October 2026's AFA is +3.61 sen/kWh, against +3.67 sen in September and a rebate of −6.50 sen in October 2025. Domestic accounts at or under 800 kWh a month still pay no AFA, RM10 retail charge or SST until 31 December 2026, and September's share of that relief appears as a credit on the October bill. The new outlook for November 2026 to January 2027 is +4.27 to +7.59 sen — higher than anything charged this year.

What changed in October

Three things, in order of how much they matter to a typical household.

1. Your October bill carries a credit for September. The 800 kWh line was announced on 17 September, halfway through the month, so September bills were issued under the old 600 kWh rule. In a press release dated 2 October 2026, TNB said the difference is calculated pro-rata and credited directly into the October 2026 bill. Look for two lines:

PELARASAN BIL (SEP 2026) — the AFA and RM10 retail-charge adjustment;
PELARASAN CUKAI PERKHIDMATAN (8%) (SEP 2026) — the SST adjustment.

TNB's eligibility schedule, based on September 2026 consumption from an actual meter reading:

600 kWh and below: no adjustment — you were already exempt under the old line.
601 to 800 kWh: adjustment to the AFA, the RM10 retail charge and the 8% SST.
801 kWh and above: adjustment to the 8% SST only.

TNB adds that an *estimated* bill does not show the adjustment; it is calculated automatically once an actual reading is taken.

2. The October rate. The AFA for October 2026 is a surcharge of 3.61 sen per kWh, or RM391 million, as published by TNB and carried on Single Buyer's AFA page. That is 0.06 sen below September, but 0.25 sen above the 3.36 sen TNB's own outlook had pencilled in for October a month earlier — the first time this year the projection has undershot rather than overshot.

3. The outlook turned. In September, Single Buyer described fuel prices as trending downward. The new outlook for November 2026 to January 2027 is +4.27 to +7.59 sen/kWh, and the commentary now says fuel prices are trending upward, citing the US-Israel-Iran conflict and El Niño. Single Buyer has not published a month-by-month split for the three months, only the range.

Every AFA rate declared in 2026

The AFA is declared monthly by the Energy Commission (Suruhanjaya Tenaga, ST) for the month it applies to:

January 2026: −4.99 sen/kWh (rebate)
February 2026: −2.77 sen/kWh (rebate)
March 2026: −2.15 sen/kWh (rebate)
April 2026: −0.47 sen/kWh (rebate)
May 2026: +1.38 sen/kWh (surcharge)
June 2026: +2.59 sen/kWh (surcharge)
July 2026: +3.59 sen/kWh (surcharge)
August 2026: +3.80 sen/kWh (surcharge)
September 2026: +3.67 sen/kWh (surcharge)
October 2026: +3.61 sen/kWh (surcharge)

Two comparisons put October in context. Against October 2025, when the AFA was a rebate of 6.50 sen, the same month now costs 10.11 sen/kWh more. And against the new outlook, October's 3.61 sen is likely to be the cheapest month until at least February 2027: even the bottom of the November–January range, 4.27 sen, is above it.

Why there is still a surcharge

AFA compares the month's actual fuel cost of generation with the base fuel cost written into the RP4 tariff. Above base is a surcharge; below base is a rebate. The base prices are 97 USD per metric tonne for coal (RM19.14 per mmBTU at 4.307 RM/USD) and RM35 and RM46 per mmBTU for Tier 1 and Tier 2 gas. The declared October 2026 figures:

Coal: 123.76 USD/MT (September: 122.85), which at 4.0834 RM/USD is 23.16 RM/mmBTU — above the RM19.14 base.
Gas Tier 1: 32.68 RM/mmBTU (September: 31.71) — still *below* its RM35 base.
Gas Tier 2: 58.92 RM/mmBTU (September: 57.87) — above its RM46 base.

Every fuel line rose slightly from September; a marginally stronger ringgit (4.0834 against 4.0944) is part of why the rate still edged down. The outlook assumes an average coal price of 137 USD/MT against 123, and Tier 2 gas of RM59 against RM58 — which is where the higher November–January range comes from.

Still a whole-account test for AFA — but not for SST

TNB's 2 October schedule settles a point that was unclear when the 800 kWh line was announced.

AFA and the RM10 retail charge are whole-account. At 800 kWh no unit carries AFA; at 801 kWh AFA applies to all 801 units, plus the retail charge. At October's 3.61 sen that single extra unit brings about RM28.92 of AFA and RM10 of retail charge.
The 8% SST is charged on the portion above the line. Accounts above 800 kWh still receive an SST adjustment for September, which only makes sense if the first 800 kWh became SST-free when the line moved up. A 900 kWh home pays SST on roughly its last 100 kWh, not on the whole bill.

If your bills sit between about 780 and 820 kWh, the 801st unit is still the most expensive one you will buy this year.

What it costs in ringgit

AFA is a flat sen-per-kWh figure times the month's consumption. On October's 3.61 sen:

700 kWh a month: RM0 of AFA until 31 December. Under the old 600 kWh line it would have been about RM25.27; with the RM10 retail charge and SST on the 100 kWh above 600, the measure saves about RM39 a month.
800 kWh a month: RM0 — about RM28.88 of AFA, RM10 of retail charge and SST on 200 kWh avoided, roughly RM46 a month.
900 kWh a month: about RM32.49 of AFA.
1,200 kWh a month: about RM43.32 of AFA.
A shop or office using 5,000 kWh: about RM180.50 of AFA.

What January 2027 could look like. January is inside the new outlook range and is also the first month the line drops back to 600 kWh. A 700 kWh household would go from paying no AFA to roughly RM29.89 to RM53.13 of AFA (700 × 4.27–7.59 sen), plus the RM10 retail charge and SST on the units above 600. A 900 kWh household would pay about RM38.43 to RM68.31. These are projections, not declared rates.

How the rest of the bill is built

The RP4 regulatory period took effect on 1 July 2025 and runs to the end of 2027. As reported when it was introduced, a domestic bill is built from a generation charge of 27.03 sen/kWh below 1,500 kWh a month (37.03 sen above), a capacity charge of 4.55 sen/kWh, a network charge of 12.85 sen/kWh and a RM10 retail charge. The monthly AFA is then added or deducted, and the Energy Efficiency Incentive (*Insentif Cekap Tenaga*) is applied as a sliding discount for households under 1,000 kWh. The temporary 800 kWh measure changes none of those rates; it only switches off the AFA, retail charge and SST for more households.

What to do with this

Check your October bill. If September was between 601 and 800 kWh on an actual reading, the two PELARASAN lines should show a credit. If you were above 800 kWh, expect only the SST line. If the bill was an estimate, the credit follows once a real reading is taken.
Use TNB's own yardstick. In the same release TNB suggests keeping daily use below 25 kWh — about 750 kWh over a 30-day month — and setting the Energy Budget in the myTNB app below RM328 if you have a smart meter.
Air-conditioning: TNB recommends 24°C to 26°C with the timer on; it is usually what tips a household over the line in hot, hazy weather.
Time-of-Use users: TNB's off-peak window is 10pm to 2pm on weekdays, plus all of Saturday, Sunday and selected public holidays — that is when to run washers, dryers and EV charging.
Between 600 and 800 kWh: plan for AFA, the retail charge and SST to return on January 2027 usage unless the measure is extended. Budget 2027 is tabled on 9 October, the first place an extension would appear.
Businesses: budget on each month's declared rate. On the new outlook, October is the cheap month.

Questions on a specific bill go to TNB CareLine on 1300-88-5454 (8am–7pm weekdays, 8am–5pm weekends and public holidays) or CareLine@myTNB.my.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the TNB AFA rate for October 2026?

The Automatic Fuel Adjustment for October 2026 is a surcharge of 3.61 sen per kWh, equivalent to RM391 million, as published by TNB and shown on Single Buyer's AFA page. That is slightly below September's 3.67 sen but above the 3.36 sen TNB had projected for October. It is a surcharge because fuel remains above the tariff's base prices: October coal was declared at 123.76 US dollars per metric tonne against a base of 97, and Tier 2 gas at RM58.92 per mmBTU against a base of RM46. A year earlier, October 2025 was a rebate of 6.50 sen per kWh. Domestic accounts using up to 800 kWh a month are exempt from AFA until 31 December 2026.

Why is there a credit called PELARASAN BIL (SEP 2026) on my October TNB bill?

It is the September share of the 800 kWh protection. The government raised the domestic exemption line from 600 kWh to 800 kWh on 17 September 2026, after September bills had started going out under the old rule. In a press release on 2 October 2026, TNB said the relief for September usage is calculated pro-rata and credited on the October 2026 bill under two lines: PELARASAN BIL (SEP 2026) for the AFA and RM10 retail charge, and PELARASAN CUKAI PERKHIDMATAN (8%) (SEP 2026) for the service tax. Accounts that used 601 to 800 kWh in September get all three adjusted; accounts at 801 kWh and above get the SST adjustment only; accounts at 600 kWh and below get no adjustment because they were already exempt. The schedule uses actual meter readings, so an estimated bill will not show it until a real reading is taken.

Who qualifies for the 800 kWh exemption, and for how long?

Domestic TNB accounts whose total consumption is 800 kWh or less in a month, for electricity used from 1 September to 31 December 2026. Within that line a household pays no Automatic Fuel Adjustment, no RM10 retail charge and no 8% SST. On October's AFA of 3.61 sen per kWh, that is worth about RM39 a month at 700 kWh and about RM46 at 800 kWh. There is nothing to register for; it is applied on the bill. From 1 January 2027 the line goes back to 600 kWh unless the government extends it, and January falls inside TNB's new outlook of 4.27 to 7.59 sen per kWh, so a 700 kWh household would face roughly RM30 to RM53 of AFA that month plus the retail charge and SST.

If I use 900 kWh, is AFA charged on all 900 or only the 100 above the line?

AFA is charged on all 900. The exemption for AFA and the RM10 retail charge is a whole-account test: if total monthly use is above 800 kWh, both apply in full. At October's 3.61 sen per kWh, a 900 kWh month carries about RM32.49 of AFA. The 8% SST works differently. TNB's 2 October schedule gives accounts above 800 kWh an SST adjustment for September, which is consistent with SST being charged only on the units above the line, so a 900 kWh home pays SST on roughly its last 100 kWh rather than the whole bill. A household landing on exactly 800 kWh pays none of the three.

What will AFA be for November 2026 to January 2027?

TNB's latest outlook, shown on Single Buyer's AFA page, projects a range of +4.27 to +7.59 sen per kWh for November 2026 to January 2027, under its base case labelled emerging conflict. That is higher than any rate actually charged in 2026 so far, and it reverses September's commentary: fuel prices are now described as trending upward, with an assumed average coal price of 137 US dollars per tonne against 123. No month-by-month split has been published. A projection is not a bill; each month's rate is declared for that month, and this year the projections have missed in both directions, overshooting September and undershooting October.

Does AFA apply to my shop, office or factory?

Yes, on every unit. Both the standing 600 kWh exemption and the temporary 800 kWh line are for domestic customers only. Non-domestic accounts, meaning shops, offices, restaurants, factories and other premises on a commercial or industrial tariff, pay the monthly AFA on their full consumption. For a premises drawing 5,000 kWh a month, October's 3.61 sen works out to about RM180.50 of AFA. On TNB's November to January outlook of 4.27 to 7.59 sen, the same usage would cost roughly RM213.50 to RM379.50 a month, so businesses should budget on each month's declared rate and treat October as the cheap month.

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TNB AFA October 2026: 3.61 sen/kWh, Your September 800 kWh Credit Lands This Month — and the Outlook Turns Up to 7.59 sen

What changed in October

Every AFA rate declared in 2026

Why there is still a surcharge

Still a whole-account test for AFA — but not for SST

What it costs in ringgit

How the rest of the bill is built

What to do with this

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Frequently Asked Questions

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