LAHORE: Member Energy Ministry of Planning Development & Special Initiatives Waqas Bin Najib is likely to be appointed as the very first Managing Director of Power Planning & Monitoring Company (PPMC), said reliable sources.
Najib has a vast experience in various segments of energy value chain. During his career in the industry, he has worked in diverse domains like research, public policy, business management and corporate strategy. Prior to joining the planning commission, he has been part of distribution leadership team, heading the technology and innovation division at K-Electric. He has been leading the digitization and automation of business processes with a diverse experience in research, corporate strategy, business restructuring, project development and public policy domains.
According to the sources, Najib has been short-listed after the interviews of all the candidates back in the middle of December. They said the power division had set a priority of selecting some expatriate Pakistani suitable for the job to pursue and active power sector reform agenda under the national electricity policy 2021, including circular debt management, competitive implementation of enterprise resource planning in all power sector entities, review of design and standards, market implementation and regulatory affairs department in all distribution companies, and subsidy reforms etc.
It may be noted that the federal government has changed the name of Pepco (Pakistan Electric Power Company) while incorporating as a firm limited by shares in the Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan under the provision of the Companies Act of 2017. The company, will now onward, work with a new name as the Power Planning and Monitoring Company (PPMC).
Meanwhile, some power sector quarters have raised eyebrows over the development, saying that Najib would be another former employee of KE after Tabish Gohar, former Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Energy. It may be noted that Gohar was facing strong criticism for brining in over 40 middle level officers from KE to the Board of Directors (BoDs) of various energy sector entities.
They said the BoDs are not only controversial but also have severe conflict of interest. The power division had advertised for nomination of Directors of BoDs of power sector entities and lot of applications were received but none of them was considered. In a Senate hearing, the additional secretary had lied in front of the committee that there is no procedure of advertisement whereas the advertisements are on record.
The misquoted fact is recorded in the minutes of senate committee on power. The federal government has speeded up consultation for changing the composition of the BoDs of various entities.
The sources have further pointed out that there are some forces active in paving the way for an early disposal of KE. However, they added, that the privatization of the entity was facing some fundamental issues like clearance of the dues of Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) and another energy entity of the federal government besides its strategic importance in a port city.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022