KE looks to pacify Karachi chamber

Promises reduced load-shedding in commercial markets

KARACHI: K-Electric (KE) assured the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) that commercial areas will not have to suffer load-shedding for the remaining days of Ramazan.



The assurance came ahead of the peak shopping season during which outages would be troublesome for both consumers and businessmen apart from harming sales ahead of Eidul Fitr.  K-Electric representatives stated that teams from their maintenance department will remain deployed in commercial markets to handle power failures.

KCCI representatives were also asked to share contact details of focal persons in commercial centres so that they could be linked with maintenance teams in their area for prompt reporting and correction of power failures.

Referring to the difficulties faced by the masses, they blamed curtailment of supply from the national grid and heavy humidity as responsible for the frequent power outages explaining that efforts were being made to replace existing lines with new ones.

While its takeover by China’s Shanghai Electric hangs in the balance, KE’s representatives were optimistic about the deal which could mean pouring in of billions of dollars for improving the city’s electricity supply and distribution infrastructure.

They also claimed that KE was making efforts to increase its power generation capacity to levels sufficient enough to stop depending on the national grid altogether by 2020.

Speaking on the occasion, KCCI President Shamim Ahmed Firpo urged K-Electric to devise a clear strategy on how to provide immediate relief and take practical steps to minimize the grievances being faced by the masses due to excessive power failures in the holy month of Ramazan.



“It is very disturbing to see Karachiites suffer load shedding at unannounced timings even during Sehri and Iftar,” he added. Since the start of Ramazan several power outages have plagued the city, even in areas with 100% dues recovery, leading to mass protests in the affected localities.

While technical issues and humidity levels have been cited as the main reasons KE’s neglect of its transmission and distribution infrastructure has compounded the problems.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 10^th, 2017.

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