Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has approved a two-hour load-shedding plan for the summer season, which will run from March 1 to September 2023.
The decision was made during a high-powered meeting chaired by the Prime Minister.
Currently, the government is already implementing a two-hour power outage, which will continue during Ramazan as well. However, the meeting clarified that there will be no load-shedding during Sehr and Iftar times.
The load management plan was developed under three scenarios, depending on the availability of funds and power generation capacity. These scenarios include a two-hour, three-hour, and four-hour load-shedding plan.
During the meeting, officials stated that a total cash cover of Rs. 2.280 trillion would be needed for a two-hour load-shedding plan, Rs. 2.183 trillion for a three-hour plan, and Rs. 2.106 trillion for a four-hour plan.
The Central Power Purchasing Agency-Guarantee (CPPA-G) will provide Rs. 1.945 trillion for a two-hour load-shedding plan, Rs. 1.874 trillion for a three-hour plan, and Rs. 1.821 trillion for a four-hour plan.
The load management plan will also require a total forex cover of $1.280 billion will be required, of which $410 million, $343 million, and $299 million will be needed for two, three, and four-hour load-shedding respectively.
Furthermore, Rs. 175 billion, Rs. 164 billion, and Rs. 142 billion will be required for Residual Fuel Oil (RFO) for two, three, and four-hour load management, respectively. However, the government has decided not to use imported RFO for electricity generation.