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PAKISTAN

Title: Wapda Resorts to Unnanounced Load-Shedding

ASIF FAROOQI

ISLAMABAD (May 2) : Depreciation in thermal and hydel power generation in recent weeks has compelled Water and Power Development Authority to resort to unannounced load shedding in many parts of the country, official sources told Business Recorder.

Wapda authorities have failed to produce more thermal power to meet the hydel power deficit as its several thermal units are closed for technical reasons.

Statistics made available suggest that power generation in the country remained sluggish for the last few weeks and at many occasions failed to even meet the actual requirement.

Sources at the ministry of Water and Power, quoting the latest figures on the power generation said that only on April 26, Wapda shed 300 megawatts of electricity by switching off power supply for a brief period. Peak requirement on that particular day was recorded to be at around 9000 megawatts.

Sources said Wapda has been able to generate average of 30 to 40 per cent of the total installed capacity of the hydel units last month. Out of the total installed capacity of 4800 mw of hydel power, Wapda generated average 1,500 to 1,800 mw daily.

Dip in the hydel power generation is understandable as rivers are running short of water, but the sources said Wapda's efficiency can be questioned when it failed to meet the power deficit by raising generation through thermal units.

Figures suggest that thermal power generation too was in severe depreciation and out of the installed capacity of 4,900 Wapda produced an average of 2,200 to 2,900 mw electricity per day.

Performance of the Karachi Electric Supply corporation remained even more disappointing as it produced an average of 700 to 800 mw electricity against its capacity of 1,737 mw per day.

However thermal units in the private sector remained to be unaffected as they are on average producing 4,000 mw as against total installed capacity of the IPPs of about 5,500 mw.

Sources said Wapda has informed the ministry that more than half a dozen of its thermal power units located at Multan, Lakhra, Muzaffar Garh, Jamshoro remained closed for technical reasons.

Sources said poor performance on the part of Wapda made the consumers suffer from time to time as it had to resort to load-shedding to fill the gap between the power generation and demand throughout the month.

Copyright 2000 Business Recorder (www.brecorder.com)

http://www.brecorder.com/story/S00DD/SDE02/SDE02353.htm

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-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), May 02, 2000