Govt offer upfront tariff to woo private investment in energy sector

Wapda chairman suggested for the for fast track development of the energy projects under Public Private Partnership.


Web Desk July 08, 2014

ISLAMABAD: The government intends to woo private sector investment in the energy sector by offering them reasonable upfront tariff, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Tuesday.

He was chairing a meeting on issues related to financing of Diamer-Bhasha Dam along with Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif at the finance ministry on Tuesday.

While briefing the meeting on past experiences of project developments through Private Power Infrastructure Board (PPIB), it was noted that private investors short listed for development of hydel power projects could not achieve financial close as scheduled due to the lengthy procedures involved. To tackle this, Chairman Wapda Zafar Mahmood suggested for fast tracking development of projects under Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode.

He further suggested that the government of Pakistan may share some responsibilities with the private investors at development and execution stage. Mahmood presented a complete framework for financial arrangements for mega power projects.

After the briefing by the Wapda chairman, the finance minister directed him to prepare a model in the light of decisions taken in the meeting for a presentation to the Prime Minister.

Dar expressed his optimism that international investors will be interested in investment opportunities in Pakistan given the promise of good returns.

Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif, Advisor to Finance Ministry Rana Assad Amin and senior officials of the Ministries of Finance and Water and Power also attended the meeting.

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