‘Rs146bn unpaid’: Energy minister writes letters to provinces for outstanding power dues

Federal Minister for Power Division Sardar Awais Leghari has written letters to the chief ministers of all four provinces for payment of overdue electricity bills of their respective government departments, amounting over Rs146 billion, a ministry statement read on Thursday.

Pakistan’s energy sector has been in crisis for a number of reasons. One of the core issues is the circular debt, when power companies are unable to pay fuel suppliers and power producers due to non-payment from consumers, including government institutions.

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A total of over Rs146 billion is outstanding on various provincial governments’ departments, according to the ministry.

“The Ministry of Energy (Power Division) has initiated a number of reforms initiatives in the power sector under the able leadership of the Prime Minister in order to bring back the power utility companies on the path of efficient service delivery coupled with making energy cheaper to the end consumers,” Leghari wrote in the letters, copies of which are available with Business Recorder.

“One key area of the reforms road map pertains to consolidation of financial health of the power distribution companies,” he said.

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The minister said one key issue faced by the sector is the outstanding amounts of provincial departments in electricity bills that run in billions, Rs59.682 billion in case of Sindh government alone, followed by Balochistan with Rs39.600 billion, Punjab with Rs38.014 billion, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) with Rs8.880 billion, making a total outstanding amount of Rs146.176 billion as September 2024.

He sought “personal intervention” of the chief ministers, asking them to direct the provincial departments to clear the outstanding electricity dues.

As per NEPRA’s State of the Industry Report, as of June 30, 2023, Pakistan’s circular debt rose to Rs2.309 trillion, with an year-on-year increase of Rs57 billion.

Details of the outstanding amounts on provincial governments:

Sindh

Punjab

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)

Balochistan