2 weeks Ago By Fawad Yousafzai
ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for Energy (Power Division) Awais Leghari on Monday said that with the existing condition of the power sector if the electricity demand increases at the annual rate of 2.8%, even then the tariff would be spiking up for the next decade, and you will end up with the price that would be further unsustainable. The minister also wants a way out for Pakistan from the CASA-1000 project agreement, saying that who will fulfil the contractual obligations of the project and what will happen to its tariff.
The minister expressed these view while talking at the launch of a report, ‘In-house Power Generation for Industry and its Economic Impact.’ The report was launched by Socioeconomic Insight and Analytic (SIA). The minister said that only 87MW of generation qualify for the least cost methodology, everything else is a least cost violation.
“If we continue that way and if even we experience 2.8 percent growth in demand over the next 10 years, even then your price of power in the next 10 years would be spiking up, and you will end up with the price that would be further unsustainable,” he added. We are not only doing firefighting for today but working after 10 years on long term plan, he said.
As people will ask why you have approved Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP) 10 years ago. Whether you approve it or not, I have to buy electricity from Mohmand Dam and I have to honour the international agreements that we have made in the quest of regional connectivity, electricity coming from the Central Asian Countries, CASA-1000, he said. The minister said that I wish and you pray that Kazakhstan’s infrastructure, for the CASA-1000 project, does not take place in Afghanistan and we withdraw from the agreement, he said.
“Who will fulfil those contractual obligations and what will happen to its tariff,” the minister questioned while pointing towards CASA-1000. On the net metering and consumers going off the grid, the minister said that 1.2 GW solar net metering capacity was added this year.
Within next 10 year, if we didn’t change the regulation and if we didn’t rationalize the price structure, 12 GW will be added to the system. People are going off grid, how you will hold the people and at what price?, the minister asked..
