China's non-residential electricity prices differ according to the area and sectors, but are higher than the price of power for residential use.

For instance, electricity for residential use in Beijing was 49 fen per kilowatt hour, while that for agricultural use was around 52 fen per kilowatt hour, for secondary industry use 76 fen per kilowatt hour and for commercial use 79 per kilowatt hour, according to Beijing Electric Power Corporation.

Cao said the power price rise would not push up China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation.

China's CPI dipped 0.5 percent year on year in October, while the producer price index (PPI), a major measure of inflation at the wholesale level, dropped 5.8 percent in October from a year earlier, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

The electricity bill only accounted for a small share of household spending. Even after the future rise in residential electricity prices, it would not add pressure to a CPI hike, said Li Mingliang, an analyst with Shanghai-based Haitong Securities.

The residential power price was 50 fen per kilowatt hour on average nationwide last year, lower than the non-residential power price, said the commission, without giving the average non-residential power price across the country.

"As the electricity consumed by secondary industry, including mining, manufacturing, building and construction sectors, accounted for more than 70 percent of the country's total, non-residential power price rises will exert more influence on the PPI than CPI," Li said.