Industries wary of shifting to national grid

HYDERABAD:

The industrialists in Hyderabad have voiced concerns over the government's prodding to switch them from the gas-powered electricity generation to become consumers of Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO).

In this regard the office bearers of Hyderabad SITE Association of Trade and Industry (HSATI) conveyed their apprehensions to the officers of HESCO at a meeting on Monday.

The head of HESCO's Market Implementation and Regulatory Affairs Department (MIRAD) Majid Jatoi said the Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) is serving notices to its industrial consumers to shift to the national grid instead of relying on gas generated power. He added that the federal government also wanted to see the industrial consumers switching to the grid.

HESCO Chief Operating Officer Zulfiqr Ali urged the industrialists to make up their mind in this regard as the implementation is likely to begin in 2025. Ali and Tajamul Hussain, Director Planning HESCO, tried to allay concerns of the business community regarding the power outages and problems in the power transmission system. They assured that they are upgrading the system for flawless transmission.

"The bad [transmission] infrastructure of HESCO is the main reason why the industrialists are unsatisfied with the company's connections," said HSATI's Muhammad Shahid. "Even a fault in a jumper on an electric pole causes outages of five to six hours despite paying up to Rs10,000 as an official fee for fixing a jumper." He maintained that such power supply disruptions add to cutting down industrial production.

The association's Shouqat Rajput and Ziauddin Qureshi also complained that HESCO has not even been able to provide proper electricity load which is required in Hyderabad SITE area.