State Minister for Power Abid Sher Ali. PHOTO: INP
Around 1,800 megawatts of electricity will be added to the power system by the end of May 2015, State Minister for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali said on Monday.
He was addressing a meeting at the FESCO Headquarters.
“The addition of around 1,700 to 1,800MW of electricity will reduce load shedding. The government is spending billions of rupees to upgrade the electricity distribution system,” Ali said.
He said that the government had launched a special campaign against power pilferers. “Now, new electricity connections are being granted without any discrimination,” he said.
The minister said electricity distribution companies had been asked to repair or replace over-loaded transformers and grid stations ahead of summer.
“On the directives of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, a special campaign for energy conservation is being launched to mitigate the energy crisis,” he said.
Ali urged the media to play its role in spreading awareness about energy conservation.
FESCO CEO Rashid Ahmed Aslam briefed the meeting about steps being taken to reduce load shedding and upgrade the distribution system.
“FESCO has reduced line losses and increased the recovery of electricity arrears in the region,” he said.
“During the current fiscal year, the recovery of arrears has been at 111.79 per cent and line loses at 10.9 per cent. From July 2014 to March 2015, FESCO replaced 83,000 defective meters,” he informed the meeting.
The state minister appreciated the efforts of FESCO officials and workers. “The performance of FESCO is a model for the other distribution companies,” Ali said.
He directed officials to prepare a load management plan for the upcoming season and Ramazan in consultation with all stakeholders.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 14th, 2015.
COMMENTS (2)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ