Ready, set, summer: 48-hour power cut due as new line laid in Sindh

SUKKUR:

The residents of Upper Sindh and parts of Balochistan will have to live through 48 hours of power cuts from June 1 to June 3 for the erection of a new 220 KV transmission line between Lodra grid station and Shikarpur city.

According to the Sukkur Electric Power Company (Sepco) officials, the 220 KV main transmission line from Lodra grid station to various cities and towns of Upper Sindh and Balochistan is being replaced since last year.

The officials said that while the development work is almost complete, a short span between Lodra grid station and Shikarpur city still needs work. This will be carried out from 6 am on June 1 and will be completed by 6 am on June 3.

Abdul Sattar Memon, the media manager of Sepco, said that residents of different cities in Upper Sindh including Jacobabad, Kashmore, Kandhkot, Shikarpur, Larkana, Qamber Shahdadkot as well as Jhal Magsi, Usta Mohammad and other cities and towns of Balochistan will have to bear power outages.

Memon said that upgrading a 220 KV transformer in Lodra grid station will also be done simultaneously and therefore no power will be supplied through Lodra grid station. During the 48-hour shortage, electricity will be supplied through Dadu and Sukkur and so the residents of Sukkur and Dadu will have to face more loadshedding than scheduled.

He said that people may also experience low voltage and fluctuation at this time. While urban and rural areas have 10 to 12 hours of power cuts, this will be increased to 12 to 15 hours between June 1 and June 3.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2012.