Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Wednesday directed for an end to loadshedding in the country by May 1. The premier issued these directions while chairing a high-level emergency meeting convened to discuss the prevailing electricity crisis in the country.
He said the people cannot be put into trouble due to loadshedding in the summer and directed the concerned authorities to develop a smooth and sustainable mechanism for the supply of fuel to power plants.
He sought an effective long-term plan to end the losses of loss-making power distribution companies. The prime minister also directed the concerned authorities to ensure an uninterrupted supply of diesel to farmers to enable them to operate agriculture-related machinery and said that the district administration in rural areas should ensure the availability of diesel.
Twenty Power Plants Operational
The attendees of the meeting were informed that 20 of the 27 powerhouses that had been shut down for more than a year are now functional, which has resulted in the increased generation of power.
The total power generation has reached 18,000 MW. However, there is a shortfall of 500-2,500 MW.
The attendees were apprised that the previous government had not ensured the timely provision of fuel to operate the powerhouses and one of the reasons for the loadshedding was the criminal negligence in repair and maintenance of the powerhouses.
Shortfall Data
As per the available data on power generation, Pakistan is producing around 18,000 MW of energy while facing a shortage of up to 2,500 MW.
Sources from the Ministry of Energy revealed that currently there is loadshedding of around 8-10 hours in rural areas and 5-7 hours in the urban centers.
They added that the LNG-fired plants are being supplied only 500 MMCFD RLNG against their demand of 690 MMCFD, due to which the National Power Control Centre (NPCC) is operating furnace oil-fired plants that are very expensive to run as compared to the natural gas and RLNG based plants.
Power generation from hydel sources like the Tarbela and Mangla dams is based on the river flows, and both the reservoirs are at dead level. The sources mentioned that hydel generation is contributing 3,600 MW against the installed capacity of over 8,000 MW.
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You can do it Sir!!