ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has directed the chairman of the Privatisation Commission to provide a clear roadmap and precise timetable for the privatisation of Discos (power distribution companies) and Gencos (power generation companies).

At a meeting held here on Tuesday, the prime minister asked the chairman to come up with a plan at the next meeting so that the entire process of the privatisation of Discos and Gencos could be completed by June 30 next year.

The Council of Common Interests has already approved privatisation of nine Discos and four Gencos. The meeting reviewed the roadmap for the privatisation of Discos and Gencos and took stock of the electricity loadshedding management.

The prime minister said there was no justification for further delaying the process of privatisation since foreign investors had shown interest in power distribution and generation companies.

“It is absolutely necessary to privatise Discos and Gencos as soon as possible since there is no other way to cleanse the faltering system,” Mr Sharif said.

While reviewing the loadshedding management, the prime minister pointed out that theft, losses and pilferage of electricity and corruption in the power sector had not stopped yet. He directed the Secretary of Water and Power, Nargis Sethi, to pursue the scam of Rs16 billion unearthed by the Federal Investigation Agency in which officials of Lesco (Lahore Electric Supply Company) were allegedly involved.

Mr Sharif asked the secretary to take action against those found involved in embezzlement of Rs3.2 billion in Discos and to investigate the purchase of transformers at exorbitantly high prices which caused losses of billions of rupees to the exchequer.

The meeting was attended by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Minister for Water and Power Khwaja Asif, Secretary of Water and Power Nargis Sethi, Minister of State for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali, Chairman of Privatisation Commission Mohammad Zubair and Wapda Chairman Zafar Mehmood.

Published in Dawn, June 11th, 2014