Power cuts to reduce if summit goals followed
PEPCO DG claims 1,500MW were saved as a result of last year’s conference.
LAHORE:
Power outages during the summer will come to minimum only if the steps decided in the energy summit this year are implemented, according to Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) Director General Muhammad Khalid.
Talking about the country’s power situation, Khalid said Pepco saved around 1,500 megawatts of electricity last year as a result of the summit.
Khalid urged Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to take steps to deal with the power crisis and said that some sectors were exempted from the outages. He said that textile mills were consuming 490MW, cement industry 230MW, while continuous process industries such as paper, sugar, chemical and fertiliser were consuming 450MW.
Last year, maximum power generation was 14,400MW, while maximum demand reached 18,500MW this year. However, he said, generation capacity would increase, as 1,200MW would be added to the system by May.
Some power plants are generating electricity below capacity, as the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines is not providing required gas. Lahore urban areas were experiencing four hours of outages, while rural areas were facing up to eight hours of power cuts, added Khalid.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 20th, 2011.
Power outages during the summer will come to minimum only if the steps decided in the energy summit this year are implemented, according to Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) Director General Muhammad Khalid.
Talking about the country’s power situation, Khalid said Pepco saved around 1,500 megawatts of electricity last year as a result of the summit.
Khalid urged Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to take steps to deal with the power crisis and said that some sectors were exempted from the outages. He said that textile mills were consuming 490MW, cement industry 230MW, while continuous process industries such as paper, sugar, chemical and fertiliser were consuming 450MW.
Last year, maximum power generation was 14,400MW, while maximum demand reached 18,500MW this year. However, he said, generation capacity would increase, as 1,200MW would be added to the system by May.
Some power plants are generating electricity below capacity, as the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines is not providing required gas. Lahore urban areas were experiencing four hours of outages, while rural areas were facing up to eight hours of power cuts, added Khalid.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 20th, 2011.