Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) met the Prime Minister of Pakistan in Islamabad on Monday. On the occasion, CPNE lauded the efforts made by the government to improve the security situation in Karachi. Further, the role of power utility in improving law and order situation was discussed and they voiced their concern to the Premier that K-Electric's tariff has been completely changed and significantly reduced which would mean that K-Electric would not be able to sustain its operations or invest in power infrastructure in future.
This would significantly cause a setback to the progress made in Karachi, including reviving industrial growth and improved law and order situation. Further, Shanghai Electric Power (SEP) who have publicly announced their interest in acquiring KE with an aggressive investment plan of over USD 9 billion, will walk away and terminate their plan to acquire KE. The Government and the regulator, should create an investor friendly environment with focus on attracting investment to ensure improved service for consumers.
On this issue, the Prime Minister informed that the government understands the need for investment in power infrastructure of Karachi and its implications on everyday life of Karachi and the economy of Pakistan.
He was fully aware of K-Electric's issue and assured the group that GoP supports a right tariff regime for KE, which ensures continuity of government policies, provides incentives for performance improvement and offers a reasonable return. He further added that the acquisition by SEP is critical to encouraging foreign investment in the country and this will also be a game changer in the power sector of the country. He was aware that this is the largest investment in the power sector by a single company in Pakistan.
SEP is a strategic power utility operator and will benefit Karachi in terms of improved and reliable supply of power. He also highlighted the fact that GoP owns 24% share in KE and hence has vested interest in KE as a shareholder. Above all, smooth and reliable supply of power is of utmost importance to GoP, he added.
He also mentioned that Abraaj Group is a private equity firm, whose business model is to turn loss-making companies into sustainable profitable entities and then sell it to a specialized strategic operator and earn a reasonable return. APP adds: Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Monday assured the delegations of All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) and Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) that the government would continue to provide every possible facility to the media in discharge of their professional duties.
The prime minister in separate meetings with the two delegations said that the issues raised by media organizations would be duly considered. The APNS delegation comprised of Sarmad Ali, Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Shami, Hameed Haroon, Rameeza Nizami, Mehtab Khan, Umar Shami, Waseem Ahmed, Munir Gillani, Khushnood Ali Khan, Javed Shamsi, Haroon Shah, Syed Mumtaz Ahmed, Mumtaz Tahir, Ali Hasan, Humayun Gulzar and others. The CPNE delegation included Zia Shahid, Shaheen Qureshi, Imtiaz Alam, Ikram Sehgal, Aijaz-ul-Haq, Jameel Ather, Arif Nizami, Dr Jabbar, Wamiq Zuberi, Kazim Khan, Anwer Sajdi, Tahir Farooq, Rehmat Razi, Ayaz Khan and Ghulam Nabi Chandio.