With the temperatures rising with the onset of summer in April, the power shortages have escalated to over 5,500 MW, but the Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO) has released subdued shortfall figures of around 4500MW to mislead the masses.
A source in the Ministry of Water and Power said as a thumb rule, a shortage of 500MW converts into a power outage of around one hour and the present blackouts of over 10 to 12 hours across the country translate into a shortfall of about 5,500MW. The wrong data given by PEPCO was creating many difficulties, as the ministry had to give recommendations for the upcoming energy summit on the basis of PEPCO data. The data was also the basis for other short term and long term plans being worked upon by international financial institutions, the source added.
According to the PEPCO data submitted to the ministry on Thursday, the power demand stood at 14,512MW and generation at 9,892MW, leading to a shortfall of 4,620MW. Hydel power generation was depicted at 2,323MW, thermal generation at 1,537MW, IPPs 5,917MW and RPPs 115MW. The massive decline in power supply is due to record low inflows in dams, which have reduced the installed hydel power generation of 6,500MW to mere 1,400MW. Low fuel supplies have also affected power generation. As PEPCO’s generation companies are inefficient, more fuel is being provided to IPPs for enhanced power supplies, but IPPs are also working below capacity due to limited power supply.
