Below capacity generation: Wapda chief flays PPIB for not taking action against IPPs

The Private Power Infrastructure Board (PPIB) has been criticised by Wapda chairman for not taking punitive action against Independent Power Producers (IPPs) which are generating less power than the agreements signed with the government, sources in PPIB told Business Recorder.
At a recent meeting, chaired by Water and Power Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on 'power generation - its demand and supply gap,' Shakeel Durrani, who is a former federal secretary and closely watching the affairs of Pakistan Electric Power Company and PPIB, remarked that efficiency of Discos is deteriorating and Gencos are facing maintenance problems due to substandard spare parts. He also recommended punitive action against IPPs and rental power producers for not providing committed power.
The PPIB is the organisation, which deals with IPPs whereas rental power plants are monitored by the Pepco. The sources said four IPPs are generating 1000 MW less power compared to last year which has widened the gap between demand and supply: Hub Power Company (Hubco's) generation has been reduced by 300 MW; AES Lalpir by 350 MW; Kot Addu Power Company (Kapco) by 140 MW and Sapcol by 120 MW. However, neither Pepco nor PPIB have taken any action against them for not generating required capacity.
The Minister for Water and Power who was presiding over the meeting had questioned the Pepco Managing Director Fazal Ahmad Khan as to why the gap between demand and supply has increased from 2000 MW last year to 4000 MW this year.
He explained that demand of electricity has increased beyond the expected limits; power generation capability has decreased due to reduced supply of gas and financial problems in procurement of furnace oil, in addition to less generation by the IPPs.
The sources said, the Minister for Water and Power expressed dissatisfaction over the figures regarding gap in demand and supply presented by the Pepco/NPCC, saying the federal government has gone out of the way to arrange finances, furnace oil and gas for the power sector but there was no reduction in loadshedding duration.
Fayyaz Elahi, Managing Director, PPIB who was also present in the meeting observed that there was no uniformity and co-ordination between NPCC and Discos in implementing the loadshedding schedule and stressed the need for better understanding and co-ordination.
The meeting, after detailed discussions, decided that Gencos should maximise their generation and purchase genuine spare parts as per specifications and standards. Pepco Managing Director has been directed to closely liaise with IPPs to eliminate outages.