Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday directed the concerned departments to address the issue of circular debt in the energy sector on a priority basis.
Prime Minister chaired a high-level meeting on the energy sector. The meeting discussed a comprehensive strategy to reduce the circular debt in the power and gas sectors.
During the meeting, prime minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the concerned authorities to reduce circular debt in the power sector. He said that the PML-N government had given practical proof of the complete elimination of circular credit during its tenure in 2013-18 through better policies.
The Prime Minister vowed that the issue of circular debt would be resolved with continued hard work and effective strategy.
Circular debt of energy sector
The prime minister instructed the concerned authorities that the process of reforms in the energy sector should be completed in such a way that the circular debt is gradually reduced and eventually eliminated.
PM Shehbaz said that the natural gas distribution companies should immediately improve the bill recovery system. “No additional burden should be placed on electricity and gas consumers,” PM directed.
The Prime Minister also issued instructions to make the system of collecting electricity and gas bills more efficient.
The energy-saving plan was also reviewed in the meeting. This plan will be presented in the federal cabinet meeting tomorrow, to which the provincial chief ministers have also been invited.
Prime Minister said that all possible steps to be taken to ensure an increase in power sector revenues. PM Shehbaz said that for this purpose, the transmission system should be improved to prevent theft and the wastage of electricity and gas.
