Load shedding and
ruling engineers!

Despite Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s directive for energizing the power plants shut down in the country, the situation does not seem to be improving for two major reasons. One, Pakistan does not have enough money to bear the brunt of exorbitant prices of fuel, and two, the maintaining and repairing process is traditionally a big headache.
In sum, the people of Pakistan will continue suffering no matter what climate change has brought for them in the shape of high temperatures and also as Engineer Khurram Dastagir put it, sacrifice for the industry that is running with zero load shedding. Pakistan’s most moots chaired by premiers have not been producing enough for the common people and if Federal Energy Minister Khurram Dastagir’s press conferences are any guide, the outcome is the only presentation of position papers and allegations against the predecessors.
The most recent meeting of the prime minister was attended by Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Minister of State for Petroleum Mussadiq Malik, Minister for Energy Engineer Khurram Dastgir, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, MNA, and PM’s Special Assistant on Public Policy/ Strategic Communications Fahad Hussain.
Two of them— Khurram Dastgir and Ahsan Iqbal—are engineers and their performance is as same as it has been of Engineer Syed Murad Ali Shah, the Chief Minister of Sindh whose most development programs are marred by bad governance and engineering inefficiency.
Engineer Khurram Dastagir claims it is an absolute lie that Pakistan has surplus power. Interestingly enough, the Pakistan Economic Survey 2021–22, says the installed electricity generation capacity reached 41,557 MW in 2022. The maximum total demand coming from residential and industrial estates stands at nearly 30,000 MW, whereas the transmission and distribution capacity is stalled at approximately 22,000 MW. Either he is right or the figures given in the economic survey are valid.
Simultaneously, Engineer Ahsan Iqbal’s Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) 2022-23 speaks volumes about the engineering mind and effort of its designers.
Khurram Dastagir said this week that Pakistan’s electricity demand increased by 30 percent during the year taking it to the historical peak of 30,009 MW on June 30, while generation remained at 21,842 MW. However, the economic survey already talked about a demand of 30,000 MW and the difference is just 9 MW.
Unlike an engineer who moves on floating and thus executing solutions, he seemed to whine that the current situation is a result of the inefficiency of Imran Khan’s government and talking about forming a commission for fixing the responsibility for failure to complete power projects in time and buying fuel. Have such commissions ever been producing any yields in this country?
In absence of any engineering solution, hopes are pinned on four additions such as the resumption of K 2 in Karachi, 720 MW Karot Hydro Power Plant, 1214 MW local Thar Coal-based Shanghai Electric project which will start in December this year, and 1200 MW RLNG Trimmu Power Plant which will start running in next 2-3 months.
On the hydel generation side, water inflows in dams are increasing and Tarbella is generating 600 MW. Khurram says we will generate all 3400 MW by July 8.n