ISLAMABAD: The Power Division on Tuesday sought the support of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Power for exemption from the rupee cover requirement on projects financed by multilateral development partners, citing implementation delays and audit complications.
Appearing before the committee, Secretary Power Dr. Fakhre Alam Irfan formally proposed that development projects funded by international donors be exempted from the rupee cover condition. The meeting was presided over by MNA Babar Nawaz Khan in the absence of Chairman Muhammad Idrees, who was unable to reach Islamabad due to road blockades.
The committee approved Rs251.331 billion under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for 63 projects. Of these, 46 projects pertain to the National Grid Company (NGC), two to Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO), five to Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO), three each to Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO), Sukkur Electric Power Company (SEPCO) and Hazara Electric Supply Company (HAZECO), two to Multan Electric Power Company (MEPCO), three to Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO), one to Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB), and one to the Power Division itself. Of the total projects, 44 are ongoing and 16 are new.
The committee was informed that Rs225.687 billion of the total allocation represents foreign funding, while Rs25.644 billion will be financed through local resources.
For ongoing NGC projects, Rs150.515 billion in foreign financing and Rs16.169 billion in local funding has been proposed, while Rs25.088 billion is earmarked for new schemes, bringing NGC’s total funding requirement to Rs191.772 billion.
The Joint Secretary, Power Division, further briefed the committee that 52 development projects were recommended under PSDP for the current fiscal year, with Rs90 billion allocated in the federal budget — including Rs72 billion in foreign loans and Rs18 billion in local funding. So far, Rs31 billion has been released, leaving Rs47 billion outstanding.
The Division’s overall funding requirement for the current fiscal year stands at Rs300 billion.
Highlighting the rupee cover issue, the Secretary explained that while international donors directly release the foreign component to contractors under their own procedures, delays in approving the rupee cover portion hinder project execution and trigger audit objections.
The committee agreed to recommend to the Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives that development projects of the Power Division be exempted from the rupee cover requirement and decided to draft appropriate language for a formal request.
Story by Mushtaq Ghumman
