LESCO faces meters shortage

A shortage of required material has caused the failure of the Lahore Electric Supply Company's (LESCO) automated system, resulting in applications for connection remaining pending for months.

According to sources, the failure to replace faulty meters has led to consumers receiving inflated bills based on average.

Some officials attributed the problem to the board of directors not approving the procurement in time

Previously, LESCO completed the process of new connection from demand notice to meter installation in about 12 days.

Now the demand notices area issued and the staff check the online system daily, but the meters and other material remain unavailable, leaving them unable to provide satisfactory answers about new connections to consumers.

Due to the same problem, the meters found defective are not replaced for months and the average bill is sent to the user every month.

Consumers frustrated with their inflated bills visit LESCO's sub-divisional, divisional and circle offices where the staff inform them that their meters are faulty and need replacement. But these replacements are rarely carried out, resulting in continued heavy bills. This cycle perpetuates disputes between consumers and the LESCO staff.

The sources said the success of LESCO's automated ERP system depended on the timely availability of material.

LESCO sources said the material had not been purchased on time during the past year. Several procurement tenders for meters, transformers and other material have been scrapped in the Material Management Department and the Project Management Unit (PMU).

An officer said changes in the board of directors had hindered the timely approval of procurement plans.

However, the LESCO management claimed it was not responsible for the delay.

Officials from the operations wing told The Express Tribune that they struggled to satisfy consumers when meters were unavailable. They said the shortage had persisted for a year. The result has been high average bills for consumers, leading to disputes.

LESCO Board Member Tahir Basharat Cheema said a report had been sought from the chief executive regarding the meter shortage.