LAHORE: Former Interim Federal Minister Dr. Gohar Ejaz, former Interim Provincial Minister S.M. Tanveer, and other FPCCI leaders addressed a joint press conference, rejecting the expensive Independent Power Producers (IPP) contracts.
“Industries cannot operate with this electricity tariff. We should procure electricity from cheaper sources. Interest rates must be reduced. An energy audit should be conducted by an international independent firm. Business will thrive, industries will function, and the country will progress. There are plants that cannot operate. IPPs have invested 50 billion but have taken 400 billion. Consumers are being charged 730 billion rupees,” they stated.
Business leaders pointed out that some IPP plants provided zero supply in January, February, and March but received 10 billion rupees each month. The high cost of electricity is unbearable. Due to faulty agreements, capacity charges must be paid. Electricity prices are currently Pakistan’s biggest issue. Annually, 2 trillion rupees are extracted from the pockets of 240 million people as capacity charges, and 25% of the industry has shut down.
They added that in 2015, an average of 13,000 MW of electricity was used with a capacity charge of 200 billion rupees for 2,000 MW capacity. Now, capacity payments are 2 trillion rupees, and 2024’s consumption is still 13,000 MW with a capacity of 43,400 MW. All these IPP plants are paid 2 trillion rupees with partial or zero power production. Such IPP agreements are unsustainable for the country.
During the press conference, FPCCI elected Dr. Gohar Ejaz as the leader of Pakistan’s business community. Dr. Ejaz expressed hope for success in his new responsibility.
