Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said that the government had prioritised provision of electricity to the people at affordable rates and steps were being taken to minimise load-shedding in least possible time. He was chairing 8th meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Energy at the Prime Minister Office, which reviewed progress on the implementation of decisions taken in the previous seven meetings.
The Prime Minister directed that Neelum-Jhelum Hydro power project be completed within the given time-frame, adding, that no slackness on anyone''s part will be tolerated. He asked the concerned ministries to take steps for meeting funds requirement to ensure timely completion of this project. Chairman WAPDA gave a presentation on Neelum-Jhelum power project which on completion will produce more electricity than Mangla. He informed that around 70 percent of the project has been completed.
The Prime Minister said that concerned departments should ensure that deadlines in power generation are met in time and those responsible for causing undue delay should be prepared for accountability. Secretary Water and Power briefed the committee that the ministry has worked hard to control the growth of circular debt which currently stands at Rs 254 billion while payables to IPPs have been brought down to around Rs 144.5 billion. The Prime Minster was also informed that current electricity bill collection was 75 percent in the month of January 2015 while overall collection including outstanding amount in this month was 98 percent.