Debt threat: Some power producers sitting idle

Consumers facing eight hours of outages in urban areas.

ISLAMABAD: Despite hefty payments running into hundreds of billions of rupees, the ghost of circular debt is still haunting the government, as some power producers are sitting idle because of fears of an increase in debt.

Speaking to the media after the signing of an agreement for a 50-megawatt wind energy project here on Wednesday, Minister of Water and Power Khawaja Muhammad Asif said a tug of war was going on between the government and power thieves and power plants were lying unutilised due to concerns about the circular debt.



Those stealing electricity were raising hue and cry only to win some relief from the government, he said.

Asif said power thieves were staging protests in different parts of the country though the tussle between the thieves and government continued.

He alleged that some big guns were behind the unabated power theft and admitted the government’s failure to convince provinces to pay their dues through a federal adjuster.

Asif said consumers were facing up to eight hours of outages in urban areas but stressed that the government was not resorting to unannounced power shutdown anywhere in the country. At present, power shortfall was estimated at 2,500MW, he added.

The water and power ministry and Yunus Energy inked the agreement for the wind energy project. Besides representatives of Yunus Energy, officials of the water and power ministry were present.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 17^th, 2014.

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