Power minister claims end to electricity load-shedding

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Power Minister Awais Ahmad Leghari on Friday claimed that electricity load-shedding has been brought to an end, saying recent power management measures had been reduced and supply conditions had improved.

In a video statement, Leghari said consumers had faced “load management” over the past few days, including outages of up to five hours on April 13 and 14, but added that the situation had since stabilised.

“There was no load management on April 17, 18 and 19,” he said, adding that between April 19 and April 29, power cuts were reduced to around two to two-and-a-half hours before being phased down further.

The minister said he had presented the ministry’s position in a press conference two weeks earlier and maintained that the disruptions were not due to any lack of generation capacity or administrative failure.

He said electricity produced from diesel and furnace oil-based plants was expensive, while water releases from dams were subject to decisions by the Indus River System Authority (IRSA) and provincial authorities.

Leghari said Pakistan had recently received liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies, which helped improve the energy mix, adding that the government had opted to purchase expensive fuel to ensure supply stability.

He said hydropower generation had increased to 6,000 megawatts, compared with around 1,000 megawatts previously, contributing to improved electricity availability.

“From today, load-shedding has ended,” Leghari said, adding that misconceptions were being spread by certain quarters about the power situation.