Base tariff stands at Rs24.8, panel informed

Committee chairman says energy sector not being taken seriously

ISLAMABAD:

A Senate panel on Friday expressed its ire over the absence of the energy minister, Power Division secretary and managing director of the National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) from its meeting.

A Senate Standing Committee on Power meeting, chaired by Senator Saifullah Abro, summoned NTDC MD Rana Abdul Jabbar immediately to attend the huddle.

National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) Chairman Tauseef Farooqi  informed the Senate panel that his organisation adjusted the upward or downward expenditure on the base tariff.

He added that the base tariff rate of electricity currently stood at Rs24.8 per unit.

The Nepra chief informed the Seante body that imported fuel, which was available at $50 per tonne, had now jacked up to $400 per tonne.

He elaborated that the country was producing 34% of its electricity through thermal fuel.

Farooqi added that LNG and furnace oil were being used as thermal fuel.

He explained that the Russia-Ukraine conflict had escalated international oil and gas prices and the rate of coal went through the roof because of its global demand.

Farooqi maintained that if the country did not have hydropower sources, the rate of electricity would have exceeded Rs50 per unit.

The chairman of the committee said if the NTDC MD did not arrive willingly, he would be brought to the meeting by force.

He added that the power sector was not being taken seriously, further pushing the country into a quagmire.

Abro noted that a month’s time was given for the huddle but neither the Power Division secretary attended it, nor the NTDC MD.

“It would be better to invite a suicide bomber from Waziristan and blow up all the power plants,” an infuriated Abro said.

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The committee put off the Pakistan Penal Code (Amendments) Bill because of the absence of Energy Minister Khurram Dastgir.

The chairman of the panel said that the committee members would proceed with the bill only in presence of the minister as they were not his “slaves”.

Abro further observed that they did not happily forward cases to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) or the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

“NAB has resorted to such dirty tactics that nobody else ever has,” he added.

Senator Kamran Ali Afzal, a member of the committee, asked the Nepra chairman had the country purchased the fuel in time, would the people be overburdened.

The Nepra chairman replied that the government’s decisions impacted the prices.

He added that Nepra had collected Rs86 billion from the National Power Construction Corporation (NPCC) in the last 11 months.

Abro noted that if Nepra had not collected this amount of Rs86 billion, it would have passed on to the people.

The Nepra chief further said making final decisions on the adjustments was his organisation’s domain.

Senator Zeeshan Khanzada noted that each month, electricity was consumed and then excessive billing was added to it in the form of adjustments.

Farooqi replied that Nepra was working on a plan for adjustments for the next three months.

He added that nobody had expected the fuel prices to rise so exponentially and the coming year would be better in this connection.