The worst electricity crisis hit the country two days after damage to an RLNG-based leading power plant in Haveli Bahadur Shah, forcing the power distribution companies to conduct 12 to 14 hours of load shedding in urban and rural areas.
The national energy basket on Thursday received a mere 16,000MW from thermal and hydropower plants while the demand was hovering around 28,000MW, according to an official of the power sector. Of the total shortfall of 12,000MW, around 3,000MW was due to the closure of four plants due to sudden damage in the past four weeks, said the official.
Over 1,200MW went out of the system due to closure of Haveli unit on Tuesday evening while 250MW, 950MW and over 450MW went out of the system, respectively, due to fire incidents and technical problems at Guddu-II, Neelum Jehlum hydropower project and K-electric-owned Bin Qasim unit. Some power plants were out of the system because of fuel supply constraints, according to sources.
From the available generation, some 900MW were dedicated for Karachi while 1,000MW went to VIP and some other dedicated feeders and more than 1,000MW went unaccounted due to line losses and theft, leaving the entire industrial, commercial and domestic sectors with less than 14,000MW – half of the total demand.
Sources said Terbela, Ghazi Brotha and Mangla plants were the main contributors to the national grid, generating 1,157MW, 1,157MW and 560MW, respectively. The total hydropower generation is around 3,500MW so far, they added. Guddu units are producing a mere 780MW against their total capacity of 1,750MW, Nandipur and KAPCO are contributing 490MW and 1,285MW respectively, while other contributors are China HUB, KANUPP K-2 and K-3, Bhiki and Balloki power plants.
IPPs hydropower, NTDC wind and total solar and bagasse contribution is around 1,270MW, according to sources. The situation has forced the 10 distribution companies of the country to conduct 12 to 14 hours of shutdown in their urban and rural limits, said the officials. The Lahore Electric Supply Company was conducting an average of 10 hours load shedding in Lahore and 12 to 14 hours in Sheikhupura, Kasur, Okara and rural areas in its command.
A Lesco official said the company was getting 2,600MW from the national grid against its demand of more than 4,500MW. The absence of electricity for consecutive hours in the provincial capital badly disrupted routine life and some areas of the city faced severe water shortage. People from Multan, Khanewal, Faisalabad, Gujranwala and other cities also complained of hours’ long load shedding.
