News
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
PM asks provinces to pay outstanding electricity dues* Gilani directs for daily monitoring of circular debt
* Centre to provide immediate financial relief of Rs 41.4 billion to PSOStaff Report
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Tuesday urged provincial governments to honour their commitments made during the energy summit and clear their outstanding dues of electricity to help reduce the circular debt.
The prime minister said this while chairing a special meeting held at the PM’s House to review the circular debt issue and the dues owed to Pakistan State Oil.
Monitoring: Gilani directed the ministries concerned and organisations for closer coordination with the stakeholders, including the provincial governments, within the next few days to resolve the circular debt issue.
He said circular debt should be monitored on a daily basis and the dues of various organisations be settled.
Relief: The prime minister decided to provide an immediate financial relief of Rs 41.4 billion to PSO. The Ministry of Finance would arrange an amount of Rs 31.4 billion, while PEPCO would contribute Rs 10 billion.
Earlier, the minister for petroleum and natural resources briefed the meeting about the circular debt issue and its implications on the nation’s economy and other areas.
The minister for water and power also informed the meeting of delays in payments on part of provincial governments and about the recoveries made by PEPCO from various organisations.
He opined that the circular debt issue could only be resolved when the gap between the cost of production and the price of electricity was eliminated.
The minister for finance assured the meeting that the amount due against the federal government would be cleared within a few days.
PEPCO Managing Director Tahir Basharat Cheema informed the meeting that the company would be able to partially clear PSO’s dues by the end of this month.
The meeting was attended by Minister of State for Finance and Economic Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar, the secretaries of finance and water and power and the additional secretary of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk