Lost power: Over 1,000 MW unaccounted for, says Ali

1,006MW unaccounted for from national grid, causing Rs260m in losses to public exchequer every day, says minister.

ISLAMABAD: Over 1,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity is stolen from the country’s power supply system daily, said Minister of State for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali on Friday. He said 1,006 MW of power was unaccounted for from the national grid, causing Rs260 million in losses to the public exchequer every day, besides upsetting plans to overcome the power shortfall. Addressing a press conference, he said there was no clue of the 1,006 MW in the mismatched figures provided by National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) and the National Power Control Centre (NPCC). He revealed that although smart meters had been installed on electricity feeders, NTDC failed to connect its 494 smart meters with the transmission system under the $62 million project. As a result, one could not find actual generation figures from electricity generation companies.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10^th, 2014.