Islamabad: Secretary Power revealed in a Senate committee that employees of electricity distribution companies are getting free electricity worth Rs 1.35 billion per month.
In a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Energy, chaired by Chairman Mohsin Aziz, Energy Minister Owais Leghari said approval was given to replace the vacant units provided to DISCO employees with cash compensation, but the court issued a stay order on the matter. .
The Secretary Power announced that DISCO employees are getting free power units worth Rs 1.35 billion per month, with an average monthly benefit of Rs 78,000 per employee.
Owais Leghari mentioned that a detailed review of the IPP contracts is underway as per the Prime Minister’s directive. Today we have the capacity to perform a full IPP audit. IPP payments are made throughout the year. The 1845 megawatt IPPs run for only 85 hours and receive 49 billion rupees annually.
Secretary Power said that even if the plant remains closed for the year, he is still receiving capacity payments because we cannot afford to run the plant and these plants do not meet our merit order.
Owais Leghari added that due to high electricity prices, people are turning to alternatives. 6,000 megawatts of solar panels have been imported this year, leaving many people off the grid.
