Woes of financially strapped Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) have been multiplied as Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) has disconnected electricity supply to former due to non-payment of dues. According to sources, PSM which was defaulting over Rs50 million to privately run public utility was deprived of power supply at a time when the institution was already receiving notices from Sui-Southern Gas Company (SSGC) against non-payment of around Rs5 billion. Confirming fresh development, sources at KESC claimed that PSM was not paying huge amount despite repeated notices issued to it by the power company. Disconnection was part of a move recently started by the company against defaulters. Besides, PSM, according to sources, was already facing a scheduled gas load shedding after failure of paying billions of rupees worth dues that mills owed to the gas company.
As both SSGC and KESC have started disconnecting supply to various defaulting departments against non-payment of dues, production and out put of affected organisations were also on the cards, sources said. However, spokesman of SSGC claimed that despite disconnection notices issued by the company gas supply to PSM was not suspended. Earlier, SSGC had issued notices to all defaulting institutions which collectively owe around Rs45 billion to the gas company as it was unable to keep uninterrupted supply of gas under acute financial crisis. According to official sources of SSGC, as the company was meeting supply through borrowing credits from banks, it will no longer be able to ensure uninterrupted supply to various government and private institutions including Pakistan Steel Mills, Karachi Electric Supply Company which default around Rs5 billion and Rs30 billion to SSGC respectively.
Though notices of disconnection have been issued to defaulting organisations, SSGC has not disconnected gas supply so far. But, he said, company would not be in a position to keep supplying fuel in near future as it also has to pay gas suppliers. He said besides KESC and PSM, there were many organisations and government institutions defaulting billions of dues to SSGC.
