ISLAMABAD: A dispute has emerged between the Power Division and the Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO) over the release of funds for third-party validation of subsidised agricultural tubewells in Balochistan, with QESCO raising serious concerns over the consultant’s verification process.
On *October 28, 2025, the Power Division instructed all power distribution companies to release payments to **ICore Business Solutions, the firm engaged for third-party verification. However, QESCO has objected, arguing that under *Clause VI of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the federal and Balochistan governments for the *solarisation of agricultural tube wells (ATWs), it is the *Government of Balochistan (GoB)—not DISCOs—that must hire and manage the consultant after clearance from the Steering Committee.
The MoU stipulates that third-party verification must confirm solarisation, grid disconnection, documentation, undertakings, and removal of transformers and fixtures by QESCO for each feeder batch. Costs are to be shared by the GoP and GoB, and work on any new batch can proceed only after the verification report for the previous batch is endorsed by the Steering Committee.
The GoB subsequently appointed ICore Business Solutions, which issued three provisional field verification reports—Release-1, Release-2, and Release-3. But QESCO claims it was not consulted or involved at any stage of the verification, in violation of the MoU. It further contends that the GoB has not presented batch-wise reports to the Steering Committee, as required.
QESCO’s field checks reportedly found that the consultant’s team visited only a limited number of locations in Quetta and *Pishin, raising doubts about the report’s credibility. The company has also identified several discrepancies in the provisional reports *D1, D2, and D3, and has formally communicated these concerns to ICore Business Solutions, with copies shared with the Balochistan Energy Department.
QESCO maintains that it has yet to receive the complete and final third-party validation report, and argues that releasing funds without resolving these issues would be premature.
Story by Mushtaq Ghumman
