HYDERABAD: Federal Energy Minister Khuram Dastagir Khan has asked Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) management to prepare feasibility report for smart grid station and transformer repair maintenance workshop. He said that industrial areas should be provided power supply through express feeders.

He was talking to a High Powered delegation of Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HCCI) headed by chamber president Adeel Siddiqui on Sunday in Hesco headquarters, according to chamber’s press statement.

The minister asked Hesco chief to ensure that recruitment should be done in Hesco so that shortage of staff was overcome. He said that a committee headed by Mohammad Akbar Khan Durrani, convener chamber’s sub-committee for Hesco, should be formed. This committee would also have representation of Hesco officers like superintending engineers, executive engineers and revenue officers, according to minister.

HCCI president raised various issues before minister ranging from domestic consumers’ problems to commercial sectors. He informed Dastagir that due to increasing population the feeders, wire of Hesco evidently overloads in terms of power supply. He regretted that Hyderabad city doesn’t have its own grid station and HCCI wanted that there should be a smart grid station for the city with the result that problem of low voltage was a matter of daily routine.

Adeel Siddiqui said that traders and industrialists were facing serious issues. He called for building a smart grid station for Hyderabad. He said that industrialists were establishing industries on Tando Mohammad Khan and electricity should be provided through express feeder to it.

HCCI Chief said that since a crane was not available in Hesco Laar and Hyderabad circles which leads to numerous problems to traders and general consumers. He said that these circles should be provided bucket mounted cranes. He stated that lack of proper maintenance facility for transformers was an old issue of businessmen and traders adding that Hesco got transformers repaired privately where quality of repair was compromised.

Siddiqui reminded the minister that outgoing energy minister had announced establishment of transformer maintenance workshop. He said that Chamber HESCO Sub-Committee should be formed for addressing daily issues.

HESCO Chief Noor Mohammad Soomro, vice president Awais Khan, Akbar Khan Durrani, Lal Chand Leemani, Amir Shahab and others were present.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022