ISLAMABAD: Minister for Power, Sardar Awai Leghari said on Wednesday that the government will not purchase electricity after March 2025 as authorization has been given for the creation of an independent electricity market.
During question hour in the National Assembly, the Minister the Competitive Trading Bilateral Contract Market (CTBCM) will enable the consumers to purchase electricity from multiple suppliers.
The Minister said contracts have been reviewed with over twenty-eight IPPs, benefiting the national exchequer to the tune of Rs1.457 trillion rupees. He said since June last year the per unit electricity tariff for industries has been reduced by eleven rupees and for the rest of the country by four rupees. The Minister for Energy further shared that the electricity tariff for the EV charging stations has been reduced to thirty-nine rupees from seventy-one rupees per unit.
Awais Ahmed Leghari said special units have been established to improve recoveries and check power pilferage. He said the result of this initiative has been positive and is being expanded. He said that there is no proposal to revisit the slab system. However, the government is working on a number of initiatives to reduce the burden on the common man.
Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari said advanced metering infrastructure has been introduced in all Discos and is being implemented in phases to ensure accurate billing and increased customers’ satisfaction. He further said conditions for the privatization of power distribution companies will be met by the end of this month.
Meanwhile, he also highlighted that the circular debt had decreased by Rs. 12 billion, reaching Rs. 2.381 trillion for the period from July to November 2024, compared to Rs. 2.393 trillion on June 30, 2024. The recovery rate for this period has risen to 96%, a significant improvement over the same period in 2023, thanks to the government’s prudent policies.
Meanwhile, the Minister revealed that the Power Division had proposed revised agreements with eighteen additional Independent Power Producers (IPPs), which are now before the federal cabinet. The Cabinet Committee on Energy has approved the Power Division’s summary, allowing for a single-point power supply to Industrial States and Special Industrial Zones, and authorizing their management to handle connections, bill collections, and related matters.
