An appreciable decision

Khyber Pukhtunkhwa government has decided to set up provincial Transmission and Distribution Company. Formal approval for the appointment of consultant and drafting of terms of reference has been accorded. The provisions of 18th Amendment allows the federating units to put in place their own energy policies and set up transmission and distribution companies for the power plants that shall be built and run by the provincial governments. Sind government has established its own transmission and distribution company for coal based thermal power plants. It merits mention here that former Chairman WAPDA Engineer Fazal Shah had made formal offer of technical and professional assistance to the previous PTI government in 2015 in framing provincial energy policy for exploiting the hydel power potential. But at that time the top priority of the then chief executive of the province was BRT alone.

Construction work is progress on a number of small and medium scale hydel power stations but cheap electricity can be provided to all categories of consumers only when the province have its own transmission and distribution system in place. The consumers are not benefiting from the inexpensive hydel power being generated from Malkand-3, Golangol and Pehur power stations. The electricity from these power plants is being inducted in the national grid like throwing a drop in the ocean. Had a network of provincial electricity transmission and distribution been in place then all categories of consumers would have got it at low tariff?

The electricity tariff that is being charge for electricity through national transmission and distribution system is no longer affordable. The provincial government had announced an ambitious industrial policy in May, 2016 which is yet to take off even though 25 percent rebate on electricity bills had been assured from the provincial exchequer. The reason was that NEPRA power tariff will not remain stable what to speak of its lowering it in the foreseeable future. Hopefully, Khyber Pukhtunkhwa transmission and Distribution Company will come into existence and the federal government will not raises the tariff issues for the sale of electricity on low price to the consumers.