Khyber Pakhtunkhwa tops list of power pilferers

ISLAMABAD: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province tops the list of power pilferers in Pakistan, with electricity theft amounting to a staggering Rs600 billion in the past two years, official data showed.

According to data available with Hum Investment Team, in the past two years, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa witnessed electricity theft amounting to Rs600 billion across five districts.

Over these two years, a total of 2.7 million consumers in these districts consumed electricity worth Rs650 billion.

In Peshawar alone, electricity theft amounted to Rs60 billion over the course of two years, with 639,488 consumers benefitting from Rs200 billion worth of electricity annually.

The data also highlighted that consumers in Mardan consumed Rs68 billion worth of electricity over the past two years, with an annual theft of Rs22 billion.

Similarly, Swat saw electricity consumption of Rs32 billion by 349,298 consumers over two years, with an annual loss of Rs4 billion due to theft.

Read more: Data show Pakistan dealing with absurd levels of electricity theft

According to official records, Dera Ismail Khan consumed electricity worth Rs32 billion for 163,841 consumers in two years, with theft accounting for Rs20 billion annually.

Bannu district reported electricity theft of Rs19 billion in two years.

Moreover, in Multan district, 1,226,581 consumers used electricity worth Rs222 billion annually over the past two years, with a loss of Rs6 billion due to theft in the city.

Meanwhile, in Bhakkar district, 29,233 consumers were provided with electricity worth Rs26 billion, resulting in an annual loss of Rs2 billion due to theft.

Electricity theft is one of the major causes of circular debt and load-shedding in Pakistan, where power supply often falls short of demand, especially during peak summer months.

The government has been trying to curb the menace of power theft by launching crackdowns, installing smart meters and raising public awareness, but the results have been mixed so far.