ISLAMABAD: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Friday imposed a fine of Rs50 million on the National Transmission & Despatch Company (NTDC) for its failure to restore power supply in a timely manner following a nationwide power system collapse on January 9 last year. Following the blackout, it took 20 hours to restore the system.

In an order issued here, the regulator said it had taken serious notice of the January 9, 2021, incident of massive power breakdown and had constituted an inquiry committee to thoroughly investigate the matter in the light of Nepra’s Laws, Rules and Regulations. The committee conducted the inquiry and presented a detailed report to the five-member Nepra which initiated legal proceedings against the NTDC on the basis of the report.

It said an explanation was called from NTDC – the national grid operator – on April 1, 2021 on the basis of the inquiry report under Rule 4(1) of the Nepra (Fines) Rules 2002. This was followed by a show cause notice to the system operator on August 25, 2021, under Section 27B of the Nepra Act.

The regulator said it also provided an opportunity of hearing to NTDC on January 12, 2022, but it “failed to provide any satisfactory response and was found guilty of violating relevant provisions of the Grid Code,” hence the Rs50m fine. The regulator said it had also initiated legal proceedings against concerned power plants for their lapses, deficiencies and failures in the said breakdown, which were currently under process and being dealt with separately.

Interestingly, a separate internal inquiry committee of the NTDC had absolved the NTDC of any fault and had blamed staff of Guddu Power Company. “No NTDC’s officer/official has been found negligent for discharge of his duties, as the event which initiated this widespread breakdown was not in NTDC’s system, rather it was in the 220kv switchyard of Guddu Old Thermal Power Station under the control of CPGCL (Central Power Generation Company Limited),” said the NTDC’s inquiry report.

Published in Dawn, May 7th, 2022