ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered Techno Energy, a Sialkot-based firm, to refund an advance mobilisation fund of Rs780 million along with mark-up by Friday for its failure to import machinery for a 150MW rental power project despite keeping the amount for over two years.

“In case of failure to deposit the payment, a case be registered with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) because such practice cannot be allowed to continue in the national interest,” a bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, Justice Ghulam Rabbani and Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday ordered.

The court had taken suo motu notice of allegations of corruption in RPPs.

Earlier, the Walters Power International (WPI), which had a contract to install the 50MW Naudero-II RPP, and the Pakistan Power Resources (PPR), which was supposed to install a 110MW plant, had been ordered to return the advance payments with interest.

This amount will be returned to the Central Power General Company (CPGCL).

The Pakistan Electric Power Company's counsel Khawaja Tariq Rahim told the court that Rs1.26 billion had been recovered by cashing bank guarantees furnished by the Young Gen for its failure to commence commercial operation of the project.

The chief of the Sahuwal (Sialkot) project and the manager of Askari Bank branch in the capital's Blue Area, with which the guarantees were lying, were summoned on Friday along with the record.

Advocate Najamul Hassan Kazmi submitted a statement by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority, saying that the company had failed to bring the machinery.

The bench asked Khawaja Tariq to submit a certificate regarding recovery of the amount from the Yong Gen.

The hearing of the suo motu case was adjourned till Jan 27. COPPER PROJECT:

Hearing the Reko Diq copper development project case, the same bench noted that the counsel were requesting the court for expeditious disposal of the matter before Feb 2, when the contract for an excavation licence was to be replaced with a mineral agreement.

The case was adjourned till Jan 17 for filing of a reply. Advocate Raza Kazim requested to submit additional documents. Dawn

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Tethyan Copper Company, Pakistan, told that a mining contract had yet to be signed with the federal and provincial governments under the Balochistan Mineral Rules of 2002 after final negotiations.