Electricity Shortage: Sugar mills start supplying 15MW to MEPCO

Sugar mills would have to start producing ethanol fuel from sugarcane extract to generate power.

RAHIM YAR KHAN:

Three of the five sugar mills in the district have started supplying 15MW power to Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco).

Mepco Senior Engineer Sarfraz Hiraj announced this on Saturday at the launch of a project of power supply from the Hamza Sugar Mills to the Mepco. He said sugar mills would have to start producing ethanol fuel from sugarcane extract. He said the Mepco would purchase 7.5 MW power from the Jamaluddin Wali Sugar Mills, 5.5 MW from RYK Sugar Mills and 2.5 MW from Hamza Sugar Mills.

He said thermal power stations in the country were consuming 100 million barrels of diesel a day. In view of the increasing demand for power, Wapda is encouraging the private sector to generate electricity.

The power demand in Rahim Yar Khan was 370 MW, whereas it was being supplied 270 MW. He said the power supplied by the sugar mills would help reduce power shortage in the district.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 20^th, 2013.