KARACHI: The first regasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG)-based 450 megawatt BQPS-III plant is scheduled to come online by May which would help improve K-Electric’s generation fleet efficiency from 38 per cent to 48pc in FY21, the company said on Wednesday.

In an online corporate briefing, KE Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Aamir Ghazi­ani reiterated the company’s commitment with taking Karachi to a power surplus position by 2022.

The upcoming 900MW RLNG-based BQPS-III is proceeding as per expected timelines while renewable energy projects of 350MW were also in the pipeline, he said.

Work on the 220kV Dha­beji Grid and Transmission Lines has started and finalisation of contractual arrangements for the off-take of additional 1,400MW from the national grid was in advanced stages, Mr Gha­ziani informed analysts from various brokerage houses and financial institutes.

He hoped the National Transmission & Despatch Company (NTDC) will complete necessary rehabilitation of the 220kV Dhabeji grid along with implementation of Cross Trip scheme by this month.

Conclusion of the interconnection agreement (ICA) with the NTDC and power purchase agreement (PPA) with the CPPA-G for 2050 was crucial for off-take of additional power.

The CFO claimed KE — owing to improved operational and financial indicators — has turned around to earning profit in first half of FY21, recording 4.8pc growth in sent-out, improvement in transmission and despatch (T&D) losses by 0.6 pp and reduction in interest rates.

Published in Dawn, March 4th, 2021