Pakistan to face power outages for many years
By IANSSunday, January 23, 2011
ISLAMABAD - Hit by acute power shortage, Pakistan will continue to face the problem of loadshedding for many more years, a top official has admitted.
Pakistan Electric Power Company Limited (PEPCO) chief Muhammad Khalid Saturday ruled out the possibility of overcoming the problem of loadshedding for many years in future.
He, however, stressed that efforts were underway to keep the energy shortfall at the minimum, Geo News reported Sunday.
According to official data, the power shortfall in the country stands at 3,852 megawatts (MW), with total power production hovering around 10,439 MW.
Khalid said no timeframe could be set for elimination of loadshedding.
He said that top priority was to provide power supply to the industry and agriculture sector while uninterrupted electricity to the domestic consumers was not the priority.
The official said the export sector has been exempted from loadshedding so that the export target of Rs.20 billion could be achieved.
