NA panel told: NJHPC not paid Rs60bn for power units sold to CPPA

The chief executive of Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Company has informed the National Assembly Standing Committee on Planning, Development and Reforms that the company has sold 6.16 billion units of electricity at an estimated cost of Rs 60 billion to Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA) but it has not got a single penny so far.

The committee met with Junaid Akbar in the chair here at Ministry of Planning, Development and Reform on Wednesday and discussed the issues relating to Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project and Dasu Hydropower Project.

The committee also expressed serious concern over Neelum-Jhelum surcharge which is being collected from the consumers in spite of completion of the project. The committee was informed that an amount of Rs 60 billion has also been collected in terms of Neelum-Jhelum surcharge so far. The committee also summoned Minister for Power Omar Ayub Khan in its next meeting, seeking clarification on the issue of surcharge for the project even after completion of the project.

While briefing the project, the chief executive Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Company told the committee that the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Company (NJHPC) has injected over 6.16 billion units in the National Grid since April 18, 2019. "Allowed interim tariff is at Rs 5.918 per kWh for one year, notified on March 8, 2019. The Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) between Central Power Purchasing Agency-Government (CPPA-G) and NJHPC was drafted and cleared by the legal section of CPPA-G in June 2019. The PPA was submitted to the CPPA-G in July 2019 for approval for invoicing of payment of energy delivered, but it is not being approved. Resultantly, the NJHPC has not been paid for energy delivered to date (on our request, tariff was revised in August 2019 at Rs 9.1184 which has yet to be notified). Final tariff application is under process."

He said that the NJHPC annual debt service liability amounts to Rs 50 billion. "If revenue from the CPPA does not commence by December 2019 then the NJHP/WAPDA/GoP will go into default due to back-to-back guarantees apart from the NJHPC not meeting the routine maintenance expenses. The CPPA-G should be asked to approve the PPA with the NJHPC on priority, failing which the NJHP may have to stop the generation," he said.

He said that the company is paying salaries to its employees from Rs 100 billion loan which had been obtained from National Bank of Pakistan.

He said that the project cost as per approved PC-1 (4th revised) was Rs 506 billion and cost incurred up to June 2019 was Rs 421 billion. He said that in the current year PSDP, Rs 34.3 billion were allocated, and physical progress of the project is 99.60%.

The general manager and project director Dasu Hydropower Project briefed the committee about the Dasu Hydropower Project stage-1 (2,160 MW), district Kohistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He informed that contract agreement was signed on November 25, 2019 with JV of GE Hydro China Co Ltd & Power China Zhongnan Engineering Corporation Limited. He said that the project will be completed in February 2023.

He informed that revised land acquisition cost, including revised land rates and built up property, amounting to Rs 36.914 billion was approved by the ECNEC and federal cabinet in October 2019. He said that the project was delayed due to problems in land acquisition and the DC/LAC Kohistan has agreed that land awards will be made between March 2020 and June 2020.

The committee recommended that payment to land owners may be made immediately for land acquisition and completion of the project timely. The committee directed to invitee senior member Board of Revenue Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and DC Upper Kohistan for briefing about the issue of land acquisition for Dasu Dam. The committee directed the project director Dasu Hydropower project to continuously update the committee regarding progress of the project till its completion.

Committee member Aga Rafiullah questioned the Planning Commission about fund collection in terms of Diamer-Bhasha announced by the former chief justice for presenting the details. The officials of Planning Commission said that details of the fund are not with the Planning Commission.

The "General Statistic (Reorganization) (Amendment) Bill, 2019" was deferred till next meeting as the mover did not attend the meeting.

MNAs Sher Akbar Khan, Saleh Muhammad, Shaukat Ali, Dr Seemi Bukhari, Muhammad Sajjad, Sardar Muhammad Irfan Dogar, Syed Agha Rafiullah and Abdul Shakoor, secretary and senior officers from the Ministry of Planning, Development & Reform, Water Resources, Law & Justice, Civil Aviation and CEO Neelum Jhelum Project attended the meeting.