ISLAMABAD: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Friday imposed a fine of Rs10 million on the National Grid Company (NGC), formerly known as the National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC), for its continued failure to provide critical data regarding the Integrated System Plan (ISP) 2024-34, despite clear regulatory orders over the past year.

In its detailed order, Nepra stated it was “of the considered opinion” that NGC had failed to meet its regulatory obligations. The company, it added, had not responded adequately to a show-cause notice issued by the regulator. As a result, Nepra decided to impose the Rs10m fine following legal proceedings.

The order also pointed out that NGC had not only ignored the regulatory instructions but had claimed it was not provided with a specific deadline to submit the relevant data. This issue had arisen during public hearings and consultations on the 10-year generation and transmission expansion plan held in August 2024. Nepra highlighted that the base case of the Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP 2024) featured a low system load factor of just 60 per cent, and directed NGC to revise the plan by raising the load factor to 70pc. Despite repeated reminders and follow-ups, NGC failed to submit the requested addendum.

In response, Nepra initiated legal proceedings against NGC in December 2024, demanding an explanation for its failure to comply. The company claimed that the proposed addendum to IGCEP 2024 was under review by several forums, including the Power Division of the Ministry of Energy, the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), and the Prime Minister’s office. NGC also cited significant revisions to project costs and load forecasts as reasons for delays.

Regulator imposes fine for failing to provide key data for ISP

However, Nepra argued that NGC had not communicated these issues effectively or responded to the regulator’s queries, disregarding the integrity of the regulatory process. The authority stressed that a timeline for submission had been clearly outlined in the relevant documents, which NGC had failed to follow, thus undermining the entire planning cycle.Despite NGC’s assertions that no specific timeline was provided, Nepra found this claim to be inconsistent with the facts, as evidenced by multiple communications with the company. NGC representatives did admit that the delays were their fault but insisted they had not intentionally disregarded Nepra’s directions.

However, Nepra concluded that the delays were a wilful default and imposed the fine as a corrective measure.

Published in Dawn, February 7th, 2026