ISLAMABAD: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has imposed a Rs10 million penalty on the National Grid Company (NGC) after finding serious operational and safety deficiencies at its transmission network in Sindh’s Jhimpir region, concluding a 41-month investigation process.
In a three-to-one majority decision issued on Thursday, the regulator said NGC failed to upgrade and operate its grid infrastructure despite having received sufficient investment allowances under health, safety and environment (HSE) requirements.
Nepra’s inspection team visited the Jhimpir area of Hyderabad in May 2022 and found that the 220/132kV grid stations were energised while still under construction and without any formal handover from the project director. The team also observed that NGC had “no approved standard operating procedure for handing or taking over newly constructed transmission lines, grid stations and related equipment”.
The regulator said staffing conditions posed serious risks. Even three months after energisation, “only two shift engineers were working continuously for two consecutive days without proper breaks and without the supporting staff required to run a 220/132kV grid station”. Similar violations were found across the entire South region.
Nepra further noted an “acute shortage of manpower” at NGC’s South region, adding that despite nearly three years having passed, the company had not filled the sanctioned positions needed to maintain its expanding 500/220kV and 220/132kV grid stations and transmission lines.
According to the order, the lack of staff, transport, safety equipment and basic amenities such as water, gas and electricity left newly built assets vulnerable, with several sites located in remote areas without paved road access.
The regulator concluded that the failures directly compromised employee safety and system reliability, warranting financial penalties under the Nepra Act and relevant regulations.
