A research firm, functioning in the private sector, which keeps an eye on the economy of Pakistan, issued a report in which it is mentioned that there has been a decrease of more than eight percent in electricity production in the country as compared to last year.
Despite the fact that the country is paying billions of rupees to the independent power producers(IPPs) from the national exchequer, even without taking much electricity from them, this decrease of production in electricity is creating some doubts in the minds of the people. Pakistan’ s economy is facing an extra burden of circular debits of the energy sector due to these unjustified payments.
As a matter of fact, electricity production in the country fluctuates seasonally because demand for electricity increases during summers. So, as demand increases during summers, both revenue and production also increase to meet the demand.
The reduction in the production will definitely enhance the price of electricity in the country as the summer season is just about to kick off and as the mercury will rise, the demand of the electricity will also increase.
In this connection, a financial expert showed his apprehensions while reviewing the report on social media. He said that an increase in prices is possible because a decrease in production will be adjusted in electricity prices.
He said that an assessment of production decrease is made to determine how much reduction occurred in production from hydel or water, oil, or gas-powered plants, and based on this assessment, prices are adjusted accordingly.
According to the report 7,130 gigawatts of electricity were generated in February 2024, while in the same month of the previous year, 7,755 gigawatts of electricity were produced.
When looking at the figures in the same report, the most significant decrease is observed in electricity generated from water or hydel sources. Electricity generated from hydel sources decreased from just under 2,500 gigawatts in February of the previous year as compared to 1,766 gigawatts in February 2024, which is approximately a 14 percent decrease.
Similarly, electricity generated from coal-fired power plants recorded the highest decrease, exceeding 60 percent compared to last year. Last year, 342 megawatts of electricity were generated from imported coal, whereas in the current year, it has decreased to 135 megawatts by February.
In February 2024, some 994 megawatts of electricity were generated from local coal, compared to 749 megawatts in February of the previous year.
In terms of prices, if we look at the report, the price of electricity generated from imported fuel has seen an increase of 10 percent per unit compared to the previous year, rising from 24.73 rupees per unit in February 2023 to 27.20 rupees per unit in February 2024.
There is no one in the country ready to keep these checks and balances on these IPPs due to the large-scale corruption of the rulers because either they receive their share from them or their close cronies are holding these companies. The corrupt ruling class are equal partners in plundering the common man with these IPPs.