KARACHI, April 28: The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) on Saturday joined in the verbal protest against the country’s two major power utilities — Wapda and KESC — for their failure in providing electricity that had caused serious damage to the industrial production.

Amid reports of anticipated load-shedding by the Wapda and KESC, it warned that any indifference by the two power utilities at this juncture would cause more closures and irreversible loss of international market share and undermine the reputation and credibility of the country as a reliable exporter.

In a press statement, the APTMA expressed shock and dismay over reports that the Wapda planned to resort to another round of load- shedding from the coming week.

The news of load-shedding has come as a bolt from the blue for the textile industry which is already facing sever crisis due to the unmanageably high-cost of production and unfair competition from subsidised regional competitors.

Unable to absorb increase in operational costs on account of the recent 10 per cent hike in power tariff, already more than 500,000 spindles drawing power from the Wapda have been shut down.

Textile is a continuous process industry and power disruptions and tripping adversely affect the quality of the entire production process right down the line.

The textile industry has been at the receiving end as far as the quality and continuity of electric supply to it is concerned, causing loss in production, exports, and repeated damage to the equipment.

In the face of falling market share due to unfair regional competition, the industry is struggling hard to operate at full throttle to avoid defaulting on its export commitments. In this fragile position, load-shedding will be a death blow to this industry. Export markets, once lost to neighbouring countries, will be almost impossible to regain.

An APTMA spokesman said that the textile industry had become an essential industry as far as the country's balance of trade position was concerned and urged the prime minister and the powers that be, that this sensitive industry be spared from all kinds of load-shedding or weekly powerless rest day and be given continuous power on a priority basis.