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ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said that circular debt in power and gas sectors has become a mega challenge due to the failure of successive governments during the last three decades to bring about reforms.

Addressing a solarisation conference here, he said that circular debt has reached to Rs2.5 trillion and is four times more to the development budget, and now gas circular debt is also accumulating. He said that this was due to negligence of last three decades for not undertaking reforms and consequently, the expensive electricity is being generated in the country.

He said that for the last three decades, successive governments’ inability to bring about reform has made the circular debt a mountain. Long overdue reforms besides mismanagement and corruption are major challenges for the economy. He said that this is the need of the hour to reform the power sector to address the challenge of circular debt.

He said that the plan to shift the government’s buildings on solar system was under discussion for a few months and after Russia and Ukraine war oil prices skyrocketed and country imported $27 billion fuel in the last fiscal year, which was a big challenge for a country like Pakistan. There was also gas issue due to war and the gas was being purchased by developing countries at exorbitant price.

He said that when during the Covid period gas and oil prices were very low, nothing was done by the then government to buy them and consequently, the entire nation is suffering now. As a result, he said that the situation is that gas is not available and oil prices are very high and former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi prepared a plan to shift towards renewable energy.

PM Shehbaz terms transition to solar energy vital for strengthening economy

He said that 10,000 MW solarisation project has been started and now work on it is in progress and its first phase is that federal government departments would be shifted on solar energy by April 2023. He asked the officials to meet the deadline.

He said all the departments would be needed 300 MW to 500 MW and this would save the fuel import. He said that 3.4 cents solar of Rs8 per unit energy is being produced against Rs34 per unit being produced through other fuel. He also urged the provinces to follow the federal government as the Centre would be ready to provide needed help to them. He said that this is the only way for the survival.

He said that the Ministry of Finance would issue a letter and every department would be budgeted an amount on account of electricity bill that would be paid in instalments for shifting buildings on solar energy.

He also criticised former Prime Minister Imran Khan for using National Accountability Bureau against his opponents. He said that bureaucrats have also gone through difficult time during the previous government and now the things have changed and there is no witch-hunting.

The prime minister said that this is a national cause, to provide cheap electricity for employment generation and economic betterment, the nation expects from the government. He said that the government has to go to the IMF for providing subsidy to the farmers and to help the people affected by the floods because the previous government had not honoured its commitments. We have to complete the IMF program, he added. We have to take immediate steps for development of industry and agriculture and for this the low hanging fruit is solar energy.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022

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