NTDC Submits System Operator License Application to NEPRA

In a major move to improve the operational efficiency of the power sector, National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) has submitted the System Operator (SO) Licence application to National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA).

In a press release, NTDC announced that its Deputy Managing Director, Planning & Engineering, submitted the System Operator (SO) License application and draft Grid Code during a meeting with NEPRA Chairman Tauseef H. Farooqi.

Farooqi, while appreciating the NTDC team, remarked that this was a fulfilment of the vision laid down by the WAPDA Restructuring Plan 1992.

The system operator will be responsible for operations, centralized scheduling, and dispatch of power plants connected to the National Grid. The independence of the system operator is expected to ensure transparency and efficiency in operations along with effective long-term system planning of the power sector of Pakistan.

NTDC shared the first draft of the new Grid Code with NEPRA at the end of 2021. Since then, NEPRA held numerous detailed consultations with the NTDC team and local stakeholders to align the new Grid Code with power sector needs in light of the Competitive Trading Bilateral Contract Market (CTBCM) reforms.

The Grid Code 2022, once approved, will supersede the existing Grid Code 2005. It sets out the guidelines, rules and procedures to be adopted by all stakeholders of the power sector while addressing the technological developments in the electric power business, including renewable energy power plants and High-voltage direct current (HVDC).