The government is considering setting up short term mobile power plants since the delay in the ongoing power projects has attracted criticism from opposition and the public, it has been reported. The idea was proposed by Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif in a high-level meeting headed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif last month. The plants are aimed at bridging the rising energy shortfall in the prevailing summer season.
A similar scheme of rental power plants had been introduced by the Musharraf regime as well as Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) governments in the past. The initiative had been largely criticized over alleged large-scale embezzlement of funds, and discontinued later after the Supreme Court (SC) in 2012 declared all the rental power plants to be illegal and ordered their shutdown.
Apart from setting up mobile plants, the government will be focusing on utilizing the idle capacity of independent power producers (IPPs) as well as captive power plants of industrial units.
The CM is of the view that the ongoing power projects would require some time until they become operational hence, the need to take necessary measures in the wake of the prevailing energy crisis.
He further asserted that the government must exhaust all available options in order the tackle the issue of power outages in the country. These include setting up mobile power plants, restoration of idle power projects and encouraging industrial units to utilize their captive power capacity.
He proposed the installation of mobile power plants for a period of one year after which the production shortfall is likely to narrow down following the completion of ongoing projects towards the end 2017.
The prime minister has directed the Ministry of Water and Power to conduct the feasibility of setting up short term mobile power plants as well as utilization of captive power plants.
