PBF expresses concern over the recurrence of electricity load management

The Pakistan Business Forum (PBF) has expressed deep concern over the recent recurrence of electricity load management, despite the country boasting an installed generation capacity of 49,651MW. This latest disruption, caused by a shortage of residual liquefied natural gas (RLNG), highlights significant weaknesses in power-sector planning, fuel security, and capacity utilization.

Ahmad Jawad, the chief organizer of PBF, questioned how consumers could continue to face prolonged power outages while paying fixed charges and capacity-related costs for the country's power generation infrastructure. The Power Division attributed the nighttime load management primarily to the unavailability of RLNG and the delayed arrival of an LNG cargo, which reduced available generation by about 3,600MW.

Mangla's generation also declined by 195MW, with furnace-oil plants brought online during peak hours. PBF argued that a power system with nearly 50,000MW of installed capacity should be resilient to disruptions affecting a small component of its fuel mix. The forum pointed out that consumers are facing a troubling contradiction: they are paying for capacity but can still experience power shortages when fuel availability is compromised.

The rising cost of RLNG-based electricity, up 242pc from April, further complicates the situation. PBF emphasized that while RLNG is not necessarily bad, the question is whether the expensive generation is unavoidable, efficiently procured, and properly dispatched, especially when a significant portion of July's generation came from lower-cost sources.

The forum also expressed worry about the power sector's growing circular debt, which reached Rs364bn in FY2025-26, a staggering 709pc increase from the previous year's Rs45bn.