ISLAMABAD, June 10: The government is considering setting up a separate power generation and distribution system for Islamabad, it has been learnt.

The decision was made during President Asif Ali Zardrai’s recent visit to China where the city managers signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for power generation in the capital city of Pakistan, sources privy to the development told Dawn on Sunday.

“I believe that distribution companies should be given a free hand to generate their own electricity and that is the idea behind the model proposed for Islamabad,” said federal minister of petroleum and natural resources Dr Asim Hussain, who accompanied the president during his visit to China, while talking to this reporter.

He said under the prevailing power crisis in the country, there was a need that the distribution companies shouldered government’s burden and launched their separate power generation plans.

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) and a Chinese company signed the MoU for power generation under which the civic agency can go for a solar or coal-based power plant. However, under National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Pera), the authority has to first inject the electricity into the national grid to supply it to the capital city.

At present, the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (Iesco) is providing electricity to the Rawalpindi-Islamabad region that covers the area from Jhelum to northern areas.

Under the proposed set-up, Islamabad would have a separate power generation and distribution system while Rawalpindi and other areas would remain under the current system which may be renamed as Rawalpindi Electric Supply Company (Resco).

Like other parts of the country, Islamabad is also facing power crisis with its residents enduring daily eight to 20 hours outages. The total electricity requirement of Islamabad region is 200 megawatts which will increase with the opening of new residential sectors.

When contacted, the CDA chairman, Farkhand Iqbal, said the President and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani had supported the idea of a separate power generation system for Islamabad.

He said under the MoU signed with the Chinese firm, the CDA would generate its own electricity and set its rates.

The official said the government had assured the CDA that the required changes would be made to the rules so that the civic agency could generate its own power and distribute it without sending it to the national grid.

On the other hand, Iesco officials said they were totally unaware of any such plan. “We have no knowledge about it,” said Iesco superintending engineer, Rashid Khattak.

He, however, appreciated the idea and said in the current crisis one should go for other options to generate electricity that included solar, wind and hydel.

The official said Iesco would have no objection if a separate power generation and distribution system was introduced in Islamabad.