Omar Ayub briefs IMF mission on performance of power sector

He informed the delegation regarding historic achievements by the Power Division in recoveries.

ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation headed by mission chief Ernesto Ramirez Rigo Friday met Federal Minister for Power Omar Ayub Khan discussed performance of power sector.

During the meeting, Federal Minister Omar Ayub informed the delegation regarding historic achievements by the Power Division in record recoveries and reduction in line losses and the technical and system improvement measures undertaken by the Power Division in the Power Sector.

He said that due to concerted efforts of the Team Power Division led by Mr. Irfan Ali, Secretary Power Division the circular debt has shown considerable reduction in its growth, adding that it was growing with volume of Rs38 billion per month and in 8 month its growth at the end of last financial year was reduced to Rs26 billion per month.

He said that in areas where hooks and power theft from lines was rampant, the Ariel Bundled Cables (ABC) are being installed by the DISCOs while in areas where there problem is more sophisticated like the major urban areas the Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) meters are in execution.

He further informed the delegation that 80% of the total feeders in the country are now load management free. He said that we are now investing in the distribution system both to improve its technical viability and also increase its human resources to make these entities perform efficiently.

He also informed the delegation about the new Renewable Energy Policy whereby the government is targeting to increase share of indigenous resources and cutting down the prices of the electricity for the consumers besides reducing dependency on imported fuels. We intend to increase the share of indigenous resources upto 75%, he added.

Ernesto Ramirez Rigo appreciated the efforts by the Power Division in meeting its targets. He also appreciated the efforts of Power Division in formulating the new Renewable Energy Policy. He said that Power is an integral part of the IMF programm.

He said that Power Sector performance in their views is encouraging as they had a detailed discussion with various stakeholders. He also appreciated the shift toward utilization of indigenous resources leading towards reducing the prices of electricity in the country that will ultimately benefit all walks of life.

Secretary Power Division Mr. Irfan Ali and other senior officials of the Power Division were also present during the meeting.