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FIA issues 50-question list to Hubco

ISLAMABAD: Federal Investigation Agency has issued a fresh list of 50 questions to Hub Power Company's chief executive in continuation of investigations into allegations of corruption against the country's largest private power producer.

The new list of questions was issued just ahead of expiry of January 15 deadline for completion of investigations against independent power producers (IPPs) set by Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf in his December 15 statement outlining his government's economic recovery programme.

FIA sources said the list of about 100 question was issued immediately after Eid holidays with a warning that the Hubco chief executive will be required to visit FIA offices in case the company failed to furnish a written response.

Hub Power Company spokesman Dr Anjum Siddiqui said on Tuesday the company was in the process of drafting its response to the FIA queries. "The list is of 50 questions and not 100," Dr Siddiqui pointed out.

Dr Siddiqui said the company would like the investigations into allegations of corruption to enter its conclusive stage soon. "The report is long awaited and would address Hubco's of repeated request that the government should quickly complete its investigations. The government should decided whether the company is guilty of corruption or clean in which case it should be exonerated so as to pave the way for resumption of commercial negotiations. We have committed no act of corruption, which the nation shall soon find out once the courts rule in our favour," Dr Siddiqui said.

Meanwhile, in a statement issued to the Press on Tuesday, Hub Power Company accused Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) of being in a desperate haste to prevent arbitration of the tariff dispute under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce in London.

The company said Wapda was desperate to see Entergy, a shareholder of Hubco, being made party to the proceedings before the courts in Pakistan so that arbitral proceedings could be blocked.

Hubco, which wishes to have the row over tariff issue with Wapda resolved by way of arbitration in terms of the agreement between parties, was restrained from proceeding to arbitration by an appellate order of the Sindh High Court few months back.

Hubco has appealed the Sindh High Court order. The appeal before the Supreme Court is still to come up for hearing.

While Hubco pursues its appeal before the Supreme Court, the US-based Entergy has proceeded with the arbitration in the absence of an order by Pakistani courts to join it in proceedings here.

Wapda has moved the Supreme Court to declare Entergy as a party to the dispute. "If Wapda succeeds in obtaining such an order, the next step in their strategy is to obtain an order, which restrains Entergy from participating in arbitration," says Hubco.

During the last hearing before the Supreme Court on Monday, Wapda's counsel pressed for early hearing to decide whether Entergy was a essential party to the proceedings. The court decided that Wapda application that Entergy be made party to the dispute and Hubco appeal against the restraint order, would be heard as soon as possible after January 27. A firm date for the hearing has not been set.

"The reason that Wapda wanted an immediate date is that ICC is about to get the terms of reference signed by Wapda and Entergy. Hubco would have also been required to sign the ToRs were it not restrained by the Courts to participate in arbitration. These ToRs would determine the scope of issues to be dealt by the ICC. After setting the ToRs, ICC would set a timetable for the arbitral proceedings. Clearly Wapda does not wish to sign the ToRs and this is the very reason that they are insisting that the Supreme Court should immediately pass an order to enlist Entergy as a party to the dispute and subsequently bar it from proceeding in the arbitration," Hubco said in a statement issued.

Hubco said Wapda's failure in obtaining an order or an early hearing was a setback for Wapda's legal team as it had jeopardised their strategy to block arbitration proceedings. Fortuna