K-Electric to ensure uninterrupted power supply to industries

KARACHI: K-Electric on Monday said it would ensure uninterrupted power supply to the industry, better its planning of the repair and maintenance activities, and eliminate billing issues.

These commitments were made by K-Electric CEO Moonis Alvi when he visited the Federation House, where he met Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) President Irfan Iqbal Sheikh.

The CEO expressed his commitment to improve electricity supply to the city and maintain regular liaison with the entire business, industry and trade community. FPCCI president raised the longstanding issue of electricity supply of the city in general and trade and industry in particular.

He spoke of load shedding, break-downs, unplanned shutdowns in the name of repair and maintenance, chronic mismanagement of T&D losses and over billing.

“Factories never sleep and they work 24/7/365 and it is an established norm even in the third world countries to supply uninterrupted electricity to industrial areas,” Sheikh said, explaining that goodwill and credibility was everything in export markets. He said it was next to impossible to regain orders and access to export clients after missing the deadlines vis-à-vis export orders.

FPCCI chief explained that the federal government should swing into action immediately to arrest the ever-depreciating and volatile rupee-dollar parity.

If that does not happen, the industry would prefer to shutdown instead of paying upwards of Rs60/kWh; when accounted for all billing elements, ie per unit base tariff, fuel adjustment charges (FCA), sales tax, income tax, fixed charges, etc.

He said that if the government failed to stabilise and strengthen rupee to its real effective exchange range (REER) value, industries would not be able to even repeat the export performance of FY22.

FPCCI Senior Vice President Suleman Chawla said that despite being the industrial, commercial, financial and supply chain hub of a country of 220 million and a contributor of 60 percent of all the revenues, Karachi has suffered due to the disruptions in electricity supplies for the longest period. “It must end now for good,” he added.

Chawla reiterated the demand of the business community to K-Electric to do away with the obsolete power plants and T&D losses to cut down its generation costs and pass on the benefit to the industry to reduce their cost of doing business, which surpassed all the regional, sub-regional and international competitors.

Alvi added that the Sui Southern Gas Company has not been supplying the required gas to its generation plants and K-Electric was also in negotiations with Pakistan LNG Limited for enhanced and affordable supply of gas, so the utility could ensure cost-competitive sources of power generation.