ISLAMABAD:
Having failed to fulfil its promise of ending power outages during Sehri and Iftar, the government is likely to make its offer conditional – in order to ensure a supply of power during these timings, the government has decided to increase load-shedding throughout the country.
Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, however, has not given approval for this plan just yet. Sources told The Express Tribune that the plan was tabled before a high-level meeting of the Energy Committee, held at the Prime Minister House on Tuesday. Premier Ashraf then decided that all stakeholders shall be taken into confidence before moving ahead with the plan.
In this regard, the prime minister has summoned a meeting of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association as well as the CEOs of power distribution companies today (Wednesday). If implemented, this load shedding will apply to the industrial, commercial and agricultural sector.
One of the participants of Tuesday’s meeting said that Energy Committee was informed that another hurdle in generating power was severe financial issues. The meeting was informed that Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) is yet to recover billions in dues from defaulters, including the federal and provincial departments. To make matters worse, oil supplier Pakistan State Oil (PSO) is not receiving necessary payments from the power sector.
According to sources, petroleum ministry authorities strongly criticised the power sector for non-payment of dues, saying that PSO was on the verge of defaulting. As a result, there will be no guarantee of an uninterrupted oil supply within the next few days if funds were not provided on an urgent basis. During the meeting, the prime minister directed the finance minister to release funds in order to arrange for oil supplies.
According to a press release, the premier took strong exception to the long hours of load shedding across the country over the last two days despite the fact that power generation had gone up to around 14,000 megawatts.
The statement added that Prime Minister Ashraf left Tuesday’s meeting along with the water and power minister, the finance minister, the petroleum minister and the information minister, and paid a surprise visit to the National Power Control Centre (NPCC), Islamabad, to inspect power generation and its distribution.
(Read: The prime minister and electricity)
Published in The Express Tribune, July 25th, 2012.
COMMENTS (19)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
Another promise broken by Raja Rental.
No electricity, no gas, fiscial defecit,inflation...WHAT IS ALL THIS?? WHY THESE LEADERS ALWAYS PLAY WITH US?? GIVE US HOPES AND THEN TAKE EVERY THING FROM US. .WE ARE PAYING TRIPPLE BILLS AND EVEN AFTER THAT WE DONT HAVE ELECTRICITY IN WIRES.. I THINK ITS THE TIME NOW TO DO SOMETHING..FOR OR FUTURE..FOR OUR NEXT GNERATION..
When there is a will, there is a way. When there is no will, there is no way.
First of all tackle the unpaid bills within the government circle. then move to people who use electric for free.
We've been paying the KESC bills constantly without any delay to support the Company but then the free looters were running around dancing without any action taken
If they had the ability, the power issue would have been resolved a long time back.
The power rates are already in multiple of four and the best the PM could do was to visit the NPCC to see which buttons are pushed to initiate the power cuts.
Imagine a country running on UPS and generators and dreaming of progress and prosperity.
VOTERS should think like a RESEARCHER (Fair Analysis) instead of LAWYER (Just want to win arguements)- This is the way the we can get something from DEMOCRACY; Otherwise there is NO NEED OF ELECTIONS EVERYTIME.
NOT constructing KALABAGH DAM - Nation is PAYING THE PRICE
These bunch are the most inept ever in the history of governance .. EVER. Does the PM have to give manual orders every time to release funds? Why cant it be done as part of the system.
Why are they not bothered with defaulters and meter alteration and electricity theft? Why has it taken them four years and still no official acknowledgement answer to the cause of the loadshedding, which is mostly due to non payment why were Rental power plants initiated without understanding the issue at handAs a private sector manager, i would be fired within days with such dismal performance and here they are incharge of the destiny of 180 Million ..
"ISLAMABAD:Having failed to fulfill its promise of ending power outages during Sehri and Iftar, the government is likely to make its offer conditional – in order to ensure a supply of power during these timings,the government has decided to increase load-shedding throughout the country". Pakistani leaders always have been claiming to end load-shedding and for this purpose they have been giving dates but this is as impossible for Pakistani leaders as you hear that China is facing electricity short fall and load-shedding has been started in the whole China only one hour daily.........
@I am so sick of hearing financial crisis in past 4 years. They are just uneducated rulers who don't know how to solve this mess. Commercial clients pay at 17 rupees per unit while home consumers start at 7-8 rupees. Couldn't they provide 24 hours electricity to commercial clients and got 17 rupees per unit? This would have solved financial crisis as well, and industries would have got 24 hours light, which is must for economic growth. I mean, this is just non-sense going on in our country. May God help us.
@All those who are fasting these days, Please pray that we get better govt next time. Please pray that our voters get the voting sense. We feel so oppressed with this load shedding. May God help us getting rid of these corrupt rulers and uneducated leaders.
Dear PPP leaders: Thank you for pushing us in dark ages.. We really deserve it as we elected you blindly.
Most faithfully, I remain, Your Kummee Voter
@...: I guess we start with the current PM..... who has been the inventor of this crisis
Poor Performance Party...
again an old LORY to awaam..govt should stop this drama
You need someone in power who will shoot or lock up high ranking gov officials for not paying the bill, might sound a bit harsh but the billions in default lead to thousands suffering, not to mention getting fired. If shooting and locking up gov officials is the solution, I say welcome it
a sad news. . . ;-(