News
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Power crisis takes turn for worse* Load shedding reaches 22 hours a day as electricity shortfall crosses
7,500MW* Ministry says Rs 3.27bn needed daily to overcome power shortfall
* US offers help to tackle energy crisis
LAHORE: The already severe power crisis has reached alarming proportions with the electricity shortfall exceeding 7,500MW and the duration of load shedding rising to 22 hours a day.
Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are the worst hit with prolonged and unscheduled electricity load shedding varying between 18 to 20 hours a day. Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Multan, Gujranwala and other cities in Punjab have been experiencing 18 to 20 hours of power outages amid soaring temperatures. Continuous power outages are causing water shortage in many areas. According to officials, Guddu power station tripped suspending up to 1300MW of power.
As many as 20 districts of Balochistan, including its capital, plunged into darkness after the tripping of the Guddu Power Plant that deprived the grid of 1300MW of electricity, media reports said. However, the power supply to the provincial capital was restored after an hour of disruption. According to the sources in the Ministry of Water and Power, a technical glitch caused the breakdown of the Guddu plant’s unit-4. According to sources in the Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO), the transmission line between Guddu and Uch tripped suspending the power supply to 47 grid stations. The districts affected by the power breakdown include Mastung, Kalat, Khuzdar, Noshki, Pishin, Qila Abdullah, Qila Saifullah and Chaman.
At present, the power generation stands at 9,000MW with demand around 16,500MW. The water and power secretary has said that approximately Rs 3.27 billion are required on a daily basis to deal with the electricity deficit. Senators protested against the prolonged electricity load shedding and hike in power tariff during the session of Senate standing committee on water and power. Senator Zahid Khan complained that they have been provided wrong load shedding schedule and that 18 hours of unannounced power cuts are being carried out. He demanded suspension of those responsible for misleading the committee.
Record-breaking extreme hot weather has compounded the power crisis with demand for electricity rising as the use of air conditioning increases in homes and offices. Temperature in various areas of Sindh, Balochistan and southern Punjab touched the 50 degrees centigrade mark and there were reports of some deaths and heat-stroke cases in various cities of the three provinces. Jacobabad, Noorpur Thal, Sibi, Larkana, Mandi Bahauddin, Rahimyar Khan remained the hottest areas. The Pakistan Metrological Department (PMD) has said that a decrease in temperature was expected as Islamabad, upper parts of Punjab, some parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are likely to experience rain coupled with gusty winds during the next two days.
The US has offered help to tackle energy crisis in Pakistan. Briefing the media, US State Department s Acting Deputy Spokesperson Patrick Ventrell said that a new government is coming into place in Pakistan and we look forward to working with them collaboratively as they get their government set up and have this peaceful, democratic transition of power, which we think is really a historic marker in terms of transitioning from one democratically elected government to another. To a question he said that we have a wide-ranging relationship with the government of Pakistan. The issues like counterterrorism and energy are top priorities, but we have a wide range of assistance and a wide-ranging partnership that we have with the government of Pakistan. agencies
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk