Amid tension with India, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif signed the 'Power Plan'

International News: After the attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, tension has increased between India and Pakistan. India has taken strict measures against Pakistan. Meanwhile, Pakistan is facing India's strict stance on one hand. On the other hand, it has started cost cutting. Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has signed the power plan.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Wednesday approved a revised 10-year national electricity procurement policy, reducing planned procurement from 14,000 MW to about 7,000 MW. The move is aimed at reducing the country's reliance on costly, long-term contracts and promoting market-driven solutions.

Signed the power plan

A news release from the Prime Minister's Office said that the Prime Minister chaired a meeting to review the Integrated Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP) 2024-2034 to reduce power prices and implement sustainable reforms in the energy sector. The Prime Minister said, after giving relief to the people with tariff cuts, now we are implementing an effective strategy to improve the sustainable energy sector. Along with this, the PM directed to complete the Diamer Bhasha Bandha on time.

He further said, any delay in energy projects is unacceptable. The PM further said, we are moving towards establishing a free electricity market in the country very soon, which will promote competition and further reduce electricity rates.

How will the project generate savings?

A total of 7,967 MW of costly electricity projects are being dropped from the plan. Revised project timelines and the elimination of costly ventures will lead to estimated savings of $17 billion (Rs 4.743 trillion). Prime Minister Shahbaz lauded the efforts of Federal Power Minister Sardar Awais Leghari and his team and termed the huge savings as a “historic breakthrough” for Pakistan. The meeting was attended by Power Minister, Economic Affairs Minister Ahad Khan Cheema, Information Minister Ataullah Tarar, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervez Malik and senior officials of concerned departments.

Power Purchase Plan Scrapped

Meanwhile, the power minister said in a statement that with this change, the government intends to save Rs 4.743 trillion and protect consumers from rising costs. The government has canceled plans to purchase 7,000 MW of power to ease the financial pressure on households and businesses, the minister said.