WAPDA paid Rs 82.53 billion in fines to IPPs over delay in payment of dues, PAC told

Public Accounts Committee (PAC) expressed shock on Wednesday when it was told that WAPDA paid a massive fine of Rs 82.53 billion to IPPs for not paying electricity dues within the prescribed time.
PAC meeting held at the Parliament House was also told that the power distribution companies paid charges of Rs 219.4 million to banks collecting electricity dues.
The committee directed that the entire matter of payment of fine be investigated and responsibility be assigned to those who had caused huge losses to the national exchequer.
Officials of the Ministry of Water and Power said the issue was related to circular debt which emerged due to shortage in financial resources.
A member of the committee Saeed Ahmad Zafar said the ministry purchased costly electricity from companies and then sold it at cheaper rates. He said continuation of the practice would cause the circular debt to increase perpetually.
Dr Attiya Inayatullah demanded an urgent briefing from WAPDA regarding recovery of 45% percent of electricity bills had not been made.
PAC Chairman Nadeem Afzal Gondal directed that DISCOs be directed to provide data about power theft on an annual basis. He was of the opinion that there was not as much theft of electricity as was being projected.
He also asked that the PAC be provided weekly reports about recovery made from power defaulters and thieves.
Audit officials disclosed that transformers and other material worth Rs 80 million had been stolen from NTDC and power distribution companies and the major theft of Rs 30 million took place in PESCO.
The committee was informed that illegal connections to tube wells caused a loss of Rs 660 million. Water and Power officials said 884 tube well connections out of 1,580 had been regularised and a process was in hand to regularise the remaining soon.
The committee expressed strong resentment over the absence of chief executives of HESCO and FESCO and issued show cause notices to them. The PAC took serious notice of not using the building of Islamabad polytechnic college which was completed several years back.
The committee was also informed that faulty material was purchased for Guddu barrage from three firms which caused a huge loss of Rs 510 million. On a query by the committee, it was told that those companies had not been black listed and one of them was still providing the required material. As a result no inquiry was held nor any responsibility fixed.