FFBL Power Co’s commercial start delayed by a month

118MW coal-fired plant will start production by the end of April

KARACHI: Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim Limited (FFBL) has delayed by at least a month the launch of commercial operation at its coal-fired power plant as some regulatory issues still remain pending.

“FFBL Power Company Limited (FPCL), a subsidiary of Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim Limited, is expected to commence its commercial operation by end-April 2017, instead of the first quarter [January-March] 2017,” FFBL Company Secretary Muhammad Azam said in a notification to the Pakistan Stock Exchange.

The 118-megawatt plant, set up at Bin Qasim, Karachi, has already started test operation in February.

“The power generated will be used for the existing fertiliser complex as well as for export [of 52 megawatts] to K-Electric,” according to the FFBL website.

Azam told The Express Tribune that the test operation remained smoothly under way, adding the delay in the launch of commercial operation was due to some minor pending issues with the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority. “They will be resolved shortly,” he said.

Another petty issue is the transfer of ownership of the land where the power plant has been installed to FFBL Power Company from the parent firm - FFBL.

“The issues related to power supply to K-Electric and tariff on sales have already been sorted out,” he said.

FFBL’s stock price rose 1.18%, or Rs0.63, to Rs54 with a trading volume of 1.45 million shares at the exchange.

The power plant is running on imported coal. At the same time, it could also operate on local (Thar) coal when it is available for use sometime in June 2019.

It will be one of the first coal-fired power plants to commence commercial operation in the country.

The share of coal-fired power in total electricity production stands below 1%. The government has approved a number of power plants based on imported and local coal, including the mega projects in Sahiwal (Punjab), Hub (Balochistan) and Thar (Sindh).

President Mamnoon Hussain, while inaugurating the test operation of FFBL Power Company in February, said the government had framed an efficient energy policy that had largely put the country on the path of economic prosperity. “This growth has to be sustained on a strong and steady basis,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 25^th, 2017.

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