March 02, 2008	Sunday	Safar 23, 1429

KARACHI, March 1: With summer fast approaching, widespread and prolonged power outages hit the city from Friday night due to the overnight collapse of the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation’s generation and distribution system.

Reportedly, Korangi thermal power station’s only functional unit has been shut down since Friday night while a leakage in the boiler tube has put Bin Qasim’s recently-renovated Unit 3 out of action.

The situation was compounded by the fact that the Surjani grid has been completely dead since 5am on Saturday, as was the KCR circuit which tripped on Friday night, affecting about a dozen grid stations across the city. Further power outages were caused by the closure of the distribution network due to the overloading of the system.

Since the KESC experienced generation shortages amounting to over 300MW while the demand remained at 1800MW, the utility resorted to repeated spells of load-shedding lasting over two hours each time in turn across the city. The power supply to Clifton, Defence, Mauripur, Keamari, Lyari, Baloch Colony, Old Town, Korangi, Jacob Lines and Garden was seriously affected.

During the past winter, the KESC carried out major shut-downs under the pretext of improving the system but there is currently little evidence of the steps having being effective.

A unit of the Korangi power plant, which produced 80MW, has been closed since Dec 12. One Friday night, the other unit that produced 50MW also closed due to leaks in the boiler tube.

Bin Qasim’s Unit one has been closed since Feb 28 while Unit 3, which underwent expensive renovations, is also out of action because of leakages in its boiler tube. It is not expected to be back online for another 72 hours, depending on the exact nature and extent of the damage.

The situation has led to the KESC facing a 300MW shortage, which is causing prolonged power outages. Meanwhile, Wapda has declined to commit more than 300MW, partly because of the rising demand it is itself facing, and partly because the privatised management of the KESC is reportedly reluctant to clear outstanding dues.

Sources said that there is a possibility of long hours of load-shedding on Sunday [today] because repairs would necessitate shut-downs. Meanwhile, if the KESC failed to take immediate remedial measures, it could trigger power riots in the city which would have an adverse impact on the newly-elected government’s popularity.

On Saturday, when the utility faced substantial generation and distribution losses, the maximum temperature hit 29 degrees Celsius and parents across the city worried about their children’s exam preparation. The frequent suspension of power also affected water pumping stations which caused further problems for citizens. One of the citizenry’s major complaints is the KESC’s apparent inability to work out a load-shedding schedule, so that the prolonged power outages are not only inconvenient but also causing damage in real terms.

Since its privatisation, the KESC has come under fire from not only the consumers but also the government. The earlier operation and maintenance contractors, M/S Siemens, lacked any experience of managing such a utility, and took actions that were allegedly not only ruinous but also damaged the basic structure of the utility. Losses went up, revenue went down, power outages and frequent load-shedding became common and the consumers’ confidence was shattered, which damaged the utility’s image.

After M/S Siemens relinquished charge, it was expected that the KESC management would not repeat past mistakes but no lessons appear to have been learnt. The utility has been made top-heavy, ie instead of horizontal there is vertical integration.