Power loom owners protest against outages
Fesco says fuel adjustment charges not Faisalabad-specific.
FAISALABAD:
Power loom owners on Monday protested in front of the Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco) office against increased outages and alleged overbilling.
Protesters criticised the imposition of fuel adjustment charges of Rs2.14 per unit and called the decision “unjustified.”
Talking to The Express Tribune, a power loom owner, Raja Aamir, said the industry could not sustain the increased costs of business. He said the authorities concerned increased power rates every month without considering its effects on the industrial sector.
The protesters demanded the government should reverse its decision to raise power rates. “Otherwise, we will have no other option but to shut down our units. This will bring labourers on the roads,” said Mirza Shafeeq, a power loom owner. Talking to The Express Tribune, a Fesco spokesman said the company had nothing to do with the imposition of additional charges. “This decision was taken by National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra). We are just providing the services.”
The total power consumption of Faisalabad division is 1,700 megawatts (MW), but the available supply is 1,200MW.
Fesco Board of Directors Chairman Nadeem Aftab Sindho said Nepra had imposed the additional charges, which applied to all parts of Pakistan, and were not Faisalabad-specific.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 27th, 2011.
Power loom owners on Monday protested in front of the Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco) office against increased outages and alleged overbilling.
Protesters criticised the imposition of fuel adjustment charges of Rs2.14 per unit and called the decision “unjustified.”
Talking to The Express Tribune, a power loom owner, Raja Aamir, said the industry could not sustain the increased costs of business. He said the authorities concerned increased power rates every month without considering its effects on the industrial sector.
The protesters demanded the government should reverse its decision to raise power rates. “Otherwise, we will have no other option but to shut down our units. This will bring labourers on the roads,” said Mirza Shafeeq, a power loom owner. Talking to The Express Tribune, a Fesco spokesman said the company had nothing to do with the imposition of additional charges. “This decision was taken by National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra). We are just providing the services.”
The total power consumption of Faisalabad division is 1,700 megawatts (MW), but the available supply is 1,200MW.
Fesco Board of Directors Chairman Nadeem Aftab Sindho said Nepra had imposed the additional charges, which applied to all parts of Pakistan, and were not Faisalabad-specific.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 27th, 2011.