ISLAMABAD: The Jamshoro Power Company Limited (JPCL) has moved to de-license its four aging oil-fired generation units with a total capacity of 880MW and exclude a proposed 660MW coal-fired plant from its generation license after the cancellation of its financing.
In a petition to the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra), the state-run power producer said it has begun the process of disposing of the 880MW Thermal Power Station (Units 1–4) in line with Prime Minister’s directives to phase out redundant government-owned plants. Nepra, in a notice to stakeholders, confirmed receiving the company’s request and sought public comments on the proposed license modification.
The JPCL also asked the regulator to strike out the 660MW Unit-6 from its 1,320MW coal project, citing the unavailability of funds for construction. The company’s initial generation license, issued in 2002, covered both the 880MW Jamshoro Thermal Power Station and the 174MW Kotri Gas Turbine Plant. Over time, several modifications were made — including the addition of the 1,320MW coal-fired project in 2014 — but the latest proposal marks a major downsizing of JPCL’s generation portfolio. The four steam units at Jamshoro, installed between 1989 and 1991, had been declared obsolete by the company’s board following directives from the Power Division’s Task Force on Power Sector Reforms. The disposal process for the outdated thermal units is already underway, with plant employees relieved earlier this year after being offered transfers to distribution companies. If approved, the move will mark the end of JPCL’s oil-fired power operations and shelve its long-delayed coal ambitions, reshaping the future of one of Sindh’s key generation assets.
