Year: 2020

Two Balochistan mineral firms made autonomous

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The Balochistan government has decided to make two recently established mineral exploration companies autonomous. Presiding over a meeting on Wednesday, Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan Alyani reviewed the affairs of mineral companies, inclu­ding the Balochistan Mineral Explo­ration Company and Balochistan Mineral Resources Company. The meeting decided to provide legal protection to these companies for making mineral projects under public-private partnership and getting mining leases by introducing new clauses in their rules. Provincial Mines and Mineral Development Secretary Zafar Bukhari briefed the meeting on affairs and objectives of the two companies.…

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Govt IPPs: Rate of RoE to be reduced to 10pc from 17pc

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ISLAMABAD: Following seemingly good deals with Independent Power Producers (IPPs) under the umbrella of top intelligence agency, the government has decided to reduce rate of Return on Equity (RoE) of government IPPs by 41 per cent to 10 percent from existing 17 per cent in rupee terms, indicating savings of billions of rupees per annum, well informed sources told Business Recorder. For this purpose, the government-owned-projects will approach National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) for revision of their tariffs on the basis of revised RoE, after seeking formal approval of…

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Oil sales surge 21pc to 1.6 million tons in August

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KARACHI: Oil sales increased 21 percent year-on-year to 1.6 million tons in August with furnace oil consumption in the power generation sector having sharply soared amid resurgence in post-lockdown activities, analysts said on Wednesday. Oil marketing companies sold 1.3 million tons in August last year. Sales of furnace oil (FO), high-speed diesel (HSD) and motor spirit increased 71 percent to 311,000 tons, 25 percent to 508,000 tons and 10 percent to 697,000 tons in August, according to the Oil Companies Advisory Committee. “The pickup in FO volumes was largely attributable…

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Rift among IPPs puts agreement with govt in jeopardy

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The relations of independent power producers (IPPs) have hit a new low due to serious contentions over the recent agreement signed with the government negotiation committee that saw a reduction in the rate of return and accountability of IPPs that generate excess profits. According to a report by Khaleeq Kiani in Dawn newspaper, differences have arisen between two groups of IPPs due to lack of mutual understanding and confidence in each other.  Amidst the crisis, Hubco Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Khalid Mansour penned his resignation as the IPP Advisory Committee…

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Electric buses to revolutionise transport sector

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Islamabad : Efforts are under-way to make Islamabad as the first-ever city of Pakistan to convert its public transport into electric vehicles in near future, said Federal Minister for Science and Technology Chaudhry Fawad Hussain on Wednesday. Addressing a press conference here, the federal minister said, “This project would revolutionalise the entire transport sector of Pakistan.” Chaudhry Fawad said that his keen interest was to launch especially designed bikes for the girls who face transport problems on daily basis while going to their schools and colleges. Launch of electric buses…

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