Pepco buying 43pc electricity from furnace oil fired plants at Rs16/unit

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) is reportedly purchasing 43 percent electricity from furnace oil fired plants at Rs 16 per unit which is 6856 percent more expensive than hydel power whose per unit cost is 23 paisa and its share is about 16 percent in total generation of plants supplying electricity to National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC).

The actual price of hydel electricity is about 18 paisa per unit and after inclusion of inefficiencies, transmission and dispatch losses its cost is about 22.5 paisa per unit.

The share of electricity being generated at High Speed Diesel (HSD) is about two percent but its price is Rs 19.5 per unit.

President Asif Ali Zardari, in his address to Parliament claimed that the present government has added another 3300 MW in the system, but he did not mention that most of these projects were initiated during Musharraf regime. Incumbent government has added only a couple of hundred megawatts to the system.

President Asif Ali Zardari informed the nation that the government had ensured that tariff for eight million power consumers is not enhanced during the last fours years. Analysts maintain that the President was misguided by the Ministry of Water and Power that tariff of lifeline consumers (defined as those who consume up to 50 units per month) had not experienced any increase in tariff whereas in actuality tariff for life line consumers increased by one rupee (from Rs 2 to Rs 3 per unit) during the four year period of PPP rule.

The President did not refer to Rental Power Plants (RPPs) regarded as one of the mega scams with one incumbent Federal Minister, Faisal Saleh Hayat presenting evidence of considerable irregularities before the Supreme Court.

Sources in Ministry of Water and Power told Business Recorder that no hydel project is expected to be completed in the near future.

Official documents suggest that hydel- 991.37 GWH- share 15.87 per cent, total cost Rs 223 million - per unit cost Rs 0.2246.  HSD- 119.99 GWH- share in total generation- 1.92 per cent, total cost Rs 2.312 billion with Rs 19.26 per unit. Residual Fuel Oil (RFO)- 2,652.07 GWH , share in total generation 42.45 percent indicating a cost of  Rs 16 per unit . Gas- generation 1,954.96 GWH- share in total generation 31.29 per cent- total cost Rs 8.541 billion, depicting Rs 4.3691 per unit. Nuclear generation - 435.8 GWH- share in total generation 6.98 per cent- total cost- Rs 529 million- per unit cost-Rs 1.2145 . Import Iran- 20.77 GWH- share in electricity supplied to CPPA- 0.33 percent-total cost Rs 187 million- cost Rs 9.0200 per unit. Mixed generation -71.74 GWH-share in generation-1.15 percent-total cost Rs 968 million- cost Rs 13.5 per unit and wind generation- 0.46 GWH- share in total generation-0.01 per cent-cost Rs 4 million showing Rs 9.1213 per unit.

Hence, total generation has been reported at 6,247.17 GWH in January, total cost of which was Rs 55.208 billion, indicating Rs 8.8373 per unit.

The President noted in his speech that the prime minister laid the foundation stone of Diamar Bhasha dam which has the capacity to generate more electricity than the combined production of Tarbela and Mangla dams. It is pertinent to mention here that former President General Pervez Musharraf had also laid foundation stone of Diamar Bhasha dam.

Other hydel projects under construction will yield another 1740 MW. Chinese companies have made BoT offer to generate 5000 MW.