Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday reiterated the country has managed to avert a ‘sovereign default’ while recent improvements in the agriculture and energy sectors would translate into saving billions of dollars.
The remarks from the prime minister came while addressing a ceremony in Dera Ismail Khan, where he laid the foundation stone of eight development projects.
“The coalition government decided to forego their politics for the country,” he said.
“We have paid a huge political cost, however, we remain steadfast and things have improved since then.”
PM Shehbaz said that the country witnessed record wheat production last year.
“This year we expect a record bumper crop of cotton, which will help us save billions of dollars used to import cotton and wheat,” he said.
Similarly, the increase in domestic energy reserves will also help curtail the country’s energy bill.
The prime minister said the country faced a huge risk of a sovereign default, “which was a result of (then prime pinister) Imran Khan’s deviation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreement”.
“However, despite all the obstacles, we have been able to avert a default,” the PM said.
“If Pakistan had defaulted, our Letters of Credit (LCs) would not be reconfirmed by foreign banks. Moreover, we would have faced a severe shortage of food and drugs, while our industrial sector would have been badly wounded,” said PM Shehbaz.
Talking about the upcoming energy projects, the prime minister emphasised the increased usage of renewable energy, especially solar.
“Solar electricity should be everywhere, for this we do not need gas or oil. Moreover, we have large reserves for wind power generation.”
PM Shehbaz said billions of dollars were invested in fossil-fuel-based power plants, while not much emphasis was paid to the renewable sector.
“We committed a huge blunder as a nation, thus now the time has come that after this IMF programme, we need to focus on the poverty-stricken masses,” said PM Shehbaz.
The prime minister reiterated that the national electricity transmission system remains engulfed in various issues, such as line losses, inefficiency, and theft of electricity.
“This translates into annual losses of Rs400 billion, whereas, the energy sector circular debt remains at Rs2.3 trillion. All the governments, including mine and elites, are responsible for the current state of affairs,” said PM Shehbaz.
The prime minister said that a comprehensive programme has been established in the shape of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC). “I consider SIFC as an economic revival programme, which includes agriculture, minerals etc.”
Addressing the gathering, State Minister for Petroleum Dr Musadik Malik said that since taking charge, 138mmcfd of gas has been introduced into the system.
“This translates into a profit of $500-570 million for the country annually. Moreover, 132mmcfd additional gas is expected to enter the pipeline in the coming six months. If we combine the two, this translates into a profit of $1.1 billion,” he said.
Malik said that since the last year, the authorities have unearthed 270mmcfd of gas from domestic sources.
The minister informed that gas worth $43-45 million has entered into the system from the Bettani oil well alone. “After the exploration of Wali I and Wali II wells, the gas reserves would increase to 50mmcfd, which amounts to $175-210 million,” he added.
Meanwhile, Federal Minister for Energy Khurram Dastgir Khan said that the incumbent government in its 16-month tenure has added 5,000MW of additional electricity into the national system, which includes 2,000MW from Thar coal.