New revelations were made in the inquiry ordered by Prime Minister Imran Khan into the power sector, which showed that the national exchequer faced a loss of over Rs4 trillion caused by wrong policies and measures.

According to 24NewsHD TV channel, the inquiry report showed that the total loss suffered during the 13 years was Rs4.802 trillion as a result of subsidy and circular debt.

The document called for emergency measures to reduce circular debt and power tariff.

It also proposed that the provinces should be included in circular debt and subsidy and that there should be a ban on new power plants for five years.

The report also calls for reviewing the under-construction plants, not buying electricity from the units that are more than 25 years old and stopping the installation of a new 1,600-megawatt plant by K-electric.

According to the inquiry report, 16 IPPs (independent power plants) invested a total amount of Rs50.80 billion but earned over Rs415 as profit. Moreover, the payback period for most of the IPPs was between two to four years.

It is also learnt that the IPPs lobby launched efforts to ensure that the inquiry reported wasn’t made public.

On the other hand, talks are now underway with 32 IPPs to reconsider the agreements on the prime minister’s orders. A six-member committee head by Minister for Power Omar Ayub is leading the process.

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