Nepra imposes Rs200m fine on KE

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Monday imposed a fine of Rs200 million on K-Electric (KE) for carrying out prolonged load-shedding in Karachi during the months of June and July.

The K-Electric had violated NEPRA Act, terms and conditions of its license(s) and directions given by the Authority in its multi-year tariff, the Nepra spokesperson said.

During a public hearing in June, Nepra Chairman Tauseef Farooqi noted that an investigation would be conducted into unannounced load-shedding by K-Electric in the metropolis and added that the reasons behind the power outages would be brought to the fore.

The Karachiities had been protesting frequently over prolonged power cuts saying that they had been experiencing load-shedding of up to 12 hours a day in the city.

The K-Electric had held the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) responsible for not providing the required quantity of oil for power plants.

The power utility was of the view that it had been facing continued challenges on account of inconsistent supply of furnace oil against its demand and had been highlighting the issue so that it could be urgently resolved by the authorities concerned.

The fuel shortfall had compromised the generation capability of KE’s power plants.

Explaining the situation, the KE spokesperson observed that “K-Electric’s daily furnace oil requirement is close to 2,800 metric tons these days, while it had been receiving around 2,000 metric tons per day”.

The KE argued that it had compromised both the ability to run the generation plants and independent power producers’ (IPPs) ability to supply power.