960415

Consumers' demand for

power, new connections

approved by KESC

AMANULLAH BASHAR

KARACHI: The entire industrial, commercial and domestic consumers' power demand for new connections or additional load, have been approved by the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC) as the corporation has attained the position of power generation to satiate the needs of all sectors.

Syed Tanzim Hussain Naqvi, Chairman, KESC, talking to Business Recorder, said that letters had already been sent to various industrial associations of the city inviting them to point out any pending case for sanction of power load, while the KESC on the other hand intended to advertise in the media inviting the industrial units to contact KESC for getting new connections or enhanced power load.

The chairman said that power supply position was going to further improve with the commissioning of 6th unit of 210 megawatt at Bin Qasim in July this year.

Presently the total demand of the city is around 1400 mw while the KESC is generating 1250 megawatts and the balance is met through import of 150 mw from Wapda.

The advent of 6th power unit at Bin Qasim and some three or four units in the private sector, which are also nearing completion, the KESC and even the government are giving active consideration to the ways as to how to utilise the surplus amount of power, as three units in the private sector i.e. Gul Ahmed, Tapal and WAK, are expected next year.

Although the KESC chief has claimed that the current summer would be a happy summer as the crash programme for rehabilitation of the transmission lines, replacement of feeders and grids was almost nearing completion at a cost of Rs 3.5 billion as the system had been strengthened to a great extent, the power breakdowns are being reported from different parts of the city, despite the fact that the summer is still in its early stage.