Senate body grills NTDC officials over Tarbela project delay

ISLAMABAD: Senate Standing Committee on Economic Affairs Chairman Senator Saifullah Abro has expressed concerns over delay in the completion of development projects including the Tarbela fifth expansion project.

He also raised a question about the two-month delay in awarding the contract of the Tarbela fifth expansion project, which resulted in additional interest payments.

Committee member Senator Kamran Murtaza asked if the delay was intentional or owing to negligence.

The committee reviewed delays affecting various development projects.

The committee also questioned the procurement policy of the National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC), a concern acknowledged by NTDC’s Managing Director Wasim Younis.

The committee was briefed on NTDC’s ongoing projects. The committee was told that the completion date for the Tarbela fifth expansion project was November 2024 but it has now been extended to August 2025.

The committee was told that the project agreement was signed in July 2022, with the work starting in November 2022,.

Senator Kamal Ali Agha voiced concerns about Pakistan’s spiraling debt burden, highlighting the growing difficulty of meeting interest payments.

He said that Pakistan has to repeatedly seek assistance from international institutions to secure a loan of $1 billion. The country is facing an economic crisis due to challenges in repaying the debt.

NTDC officials assured the committee that action would be taken against those involved in procurement policy-related corruption, and affidavits would be obtained from individuals working on the project.

Chairman Senator Saifullah Abro called for immediate steps to enhance NTDC’s performance and demanded taking strict action against officials causing project delays.

He also instructed that corrupt officials should not be appointed to any other positions.