ISLAMABAD: The Port Qasim Electric Power Company (Private) Limited (PQEPC) has urged Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb to facilitate the payment of outstanding dues owed by the Central Power Purchasing Agency–Guaranteed (CPPA-G) to avoid a potential loan agreement default and a government of Pakistan (GoP) sovereign guarantee default.
In a letter addressed to the Finance Minister, PQEPC Chief Executive Officer Wang Dongfeng stated that, under the guidance of the Government of Pakistan, the 1,320MW Port Qasim coal-fired power project — one of the flagship energy projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) — has consistently supplied reliable, economical, and environmentally efficient electricity to the national grid.
“We highly appreciate the efforts of the Government of Pakistan and CPPA-G in arranging funds and making tariff payments to independent power producers (IPPs).
READ MORE: Chinese CPEC IPPs press Pakistan govt for Rs475bn dues
However, the total outstanding payment due to the project has reached Rs85.5 billion (approximately $305 million) as of December 19, 2025, with payment delays exceeding six months and the risk of further escalation,” he added.
The CEO noted that project shareholders and sponsors from China and Qatar have expressed serious concern over the growing receivables and have urged immediate measures to reduce the outstanding amount.
According to Wang Dongfeng, PQEPC enjoys a comparative advantage in terms of its Energy Purchase Price (EPP) tariff when compared to other coal- and RLNG-based power plants. He emphasized that the timely settlement of the project’s dues is therefore critically important to ensure sustainable power generation and to avoid triggering loan agreement defaults as well as a sovereign guarantee default by the Government of Pakistan.
After outlining the company’s position, the CEO underscored that PQEPC has formally apprised the Finance Minister of the critical payment delays facing the Port Qasim Power Project and has sought coordination with relevant authorities to arrange financial support for CPPA-G, enabling it to clear outstanding dues at the earliest.
Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer CPPA-G, Rihan Akhtar, recently stated that total outstanding payables to IPPs stand at Rs1.25 trillion, of which approximately Rs500 billion is owed to Chinese CPEC-based IPPs.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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