July 04, 2008	Friday	Jamadi-us-Sani 29, 1429

HYDERABAD, July 3: Federal Minister for Water and Power Raja Pervez Ashraf has said that raise in power tariff had become inevitable after surge in oil prices and attributed energy crisis to huge difference between demand and supply. He said that PPP government wouldn’t build any water project including Kalabagh Dam that threatens unity of federation.

At a news conference in Hesco’s power wing colony after chairing a meeting of officers late Wednesday night, he said that expected raise was being calculated because 60 per cent of electricity was produced through oil which has become very costly.

He said that 100 per cent increase had been recorded in oil prices which was used in electricity production which had made subsidy for the government unaffordable.

“Nevertheless it will not affect middle class because there will be no raise for consumers of 200 units”, he claimed.

He said that when he took over as minister he found one third of electricity missing in system. He said that government was aware of the fact that it couldn’t move ahead without addressing current electricity crisis. He said that after planning various projects of long, short and medium terms projects government is hopeful that loadshedding would be over by next year.

Repeatedly admitting energy crisis, he said that nation needs to understand it because time is required to generate electricity.

“That’s why power topped our priority list otherwise it was at priority number 6 or 7”, he said. He said that new gas tariff wouldn’t be applied on generation companies (Gencos) and Independent Power Producers (IPPs).

Though he didn’t reply whether Gencos would be privatised but said government intends to help them attain their derated capacity of electricity generation.

He expressed the hope that by next year the crisis would be over and 6000 megawatts of electricity would be available. “Currently we are passing through difficult phase of crisis as its peak of summer”, he said.

He said that loadshedding should not go beyond six hours in urban and eight hours in rural areas. The minister was confident that after August 30 situation would improve.

He spoke about different power projects that Wapda plans to execute for electricity generation. In this context he referred to hydel, small dam and Thar coal projects.

He said that a World Bank- sponsored investors conference was being held in USA for

Thar coal project and Sindh government was fully on board. “Thar coal power project’s execution will lead to production of cheap electricity”, he said. —Correspondent