LAHORE: A recent study by a UK-based business utility organization reveals that Pakistan has been ranked 7th among the top 10 countries facing the most severe business-related power outages per year. The study, which analyzed the latest data on power cuts, sheds light on the impact of these incidents on businesses globally.

According to the study, Papua New Guinea claims the top spot for experiencing the highest number of business-related power outages, with 503 incidents annually. Yemen follows closely behind with 466 power outages per year, attributing its struggles to meet electricity demands, particularly in the capital city, Aden.

Central African Republic emerges as the country where power cuts incur the highest financial losses for firms, amounting to more than a 25% reduction in annual sales. The study highlights the stark contrast in the impact of power outages on businesses across continents, with European countries losing only 0.7% of sale value, compared to 7.8% in Africa, 4.0% in Asia, and 2.2% in South America.

Nigeria secures the third position with 394 annual power outages, followed by Central Asian Republic (348), Benin (336), Bangladesh (314), Nigger and Pakistan (264 each), Republic of Congo (258), and the Gambia (253).

While compiling the study, the firm used the World Bank data to find the number of power outages in firms during a typical month for each country. It multiplied the monthly power outages by twelve to reveal each country’s average annual power outages.

“We used the World Bank to find the value lost to electrical outages for each country. The most recent figures for each country were used, which ranged between 2006 and 2022. We removed Israel, Ukraine and Russia from our rankings,” it says.

Published in Dawn, January 15th, 2024