PESHAWAR, Dec 26: Water and Power Development Authority has released Rs500 million to NWFP against its total annual share of net hydel profit for the financial year 2002-03, according to official sources.

After remaining at the loggers head for well over four months over the issue of payment to NWFP against its Rs6 billion capped share amount for the current fiscal, Wapda ended unannounced moratorium and released a Rs500 million tranche to the new provincial government.

“The stalemate between Wapda and NWFP ended as an outcome of Wapda chairman Zulfiqar Ali Khan’s recently held meetings with NWFP chief minister Akram Khan Durrani and governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah,” said official sources.

The sources told Dawn that minister for water and power Aftab Ahmed Sherpao also played pivotal role in making Wapda to start disbursement of funds to NWFP against its constitutionally protected net hydel profit share.

In accordance with the NWFP government’s budgetary projections, the province is entitled to get Rs15.9 billion during current financial year as share under the head of net hydel profit.

In spite of laying claim to Rs15.9 billion amount, the provincial government is eying to get Rs6 billion — the capped share amount province has been receiving for the last 10 years.

According to the sources, an amount of Rs500 million was transferred to the provincial government’s bank account in line with an understanding reached between the provincial government’s high-ups and the Wapda chairman.

Aftab Ahmed Sherpao has also indicated that the province would shortly be released Rs1 billion against its annual net hydel profit share (Rs6 billion capped share amount).

Official sources said another tranche of Rs500 million was also expected to be released to the province shortly.

The sources said the last provincial government had lodged a claim of Rs298 billion against Wapda as arrears accumulated under the head of net hydel profit since 1973-74.

“Controversies hampering the working relationship between Wapda and the last NWFP government did not come under discussion after the Wapda chairman renewed his organization’s commitment to pay the Rs6 billion capped share amount to NWFP during the financial year 2002-03,” said the sources.

The release of Rs500 million has brought a sigh of relief for the new provincial government, said the sources, which was recently informed by Wapda that the Rs6 billion capped share amount might well be adjusted against the Rs19 billion arrears payable jointly by the provincial government’s defaulting departments and the electricity consumers of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).