ISLAMABAD: The United Business Group (UBG) of FPCCI on Sunday lauded the initiatives of the government to tame energy crisis. It said that many new projects are in the pipeline but existing projects should also be upgraded and substantial investments should be made to make transmission and distribution dependable.
Theft and line losses should be controlled otherwise it can double the size of circular debt as thirteen thousand megawatt of electricity will be pumped in the system in two years, said Zubair Tufail, Secretary General UBG.
In a statement issued here today, he said that transmission and distribution system cannot stand the load of additional electricity which can deprive the economy from gaining the full benefit of new power projects.
Average electricity shortfall is at four thousand megawatt which jumps to seven thousand megawatt in summer while gas shortfall is at two billion cubic feet, he said.
Zubair Tufail said that demand for electricity is increasing by ten percent annually while supply is not keeping with pace with it which has resulted in use of UPS and invertors which damage electric appliances and cost thirty billion annually which can be saved.
He said that line losses and theft should be contained and Discos should recover bills otherwise new power projects will result in increased losses as present outstanding arrears amount to almost seven hundred billion.
Current installed capacity is twenty four thousand megawatt and increased electricity supply will mean more losses which will also double the size of circular debt, said Tufail.
