Power outages galore as shortfall exceeds 6,000MW

Parts of the country are subjected to up to 12 hours of load shedding, or “brownouts.”

Officials claim the system is ‘ill-equipped’ to handle a ‘large load’ as demand approaches 30,000MW.

LAHORE: Pakistanis have been plagued by a double whammy of high heat and protracted power outages, with many distribution firms (Discos) resorting to loadshedding after the power shortfall reached 6,000 megawatts on Saturday.

Loadshedding was observed in metropolitan areas for three to six hours, while disruptions were reported in rural regions for up to 12 hours.

Brownouts (tripping, fluctuation, low voltage, etc.) produced by an overloaded transmission and distribution system demanded load management in addition to scheduled outages.

Likewise, shutdowns under the guise of maintenance persisted, making people’s lives miserable as they endured the hot and humid weather. As people relied more on air conditioners in the scorching heat, peak power demand reached 30,000MW, the most in the country’s history.

Officials claim the infrastructure is ‘ill-equipped’ to handle a ‘large load’ as demand exceeds 30,000MW.

“The peak demand reached 30,000MW on Friday,” a top source told Dawn on Saturday. “Our shortfall, if we deduct the deficit on which we observe loadshedding in areas falling within service jurisdiction of high-loss electricity feeders (power theft areas), reaches 2,500MW maximum,” the official asserted.

According to another official source, the country’s total shortfall for the past week, particularly since Thursday, has been between 5,000MW and 6,000MW. On Saturday, though, demand hit 6,300MW.

“In fact, loadshedding observed on high-loss feeders (categories 1–6) is not considered loadshedding as a policy matter.” It is actually regarded a punishment for power thieves. As a result, a significant portion of the power shortfall under this programme impacts such localities,” he asserted.

Despite such a significant deficiency, regions with no or minor losses receive energy for the majority of the hours, he said, adding that places coming under the service jurisdiction of less-loss or no-loss feeders face load shedding for [up to] three hours in metropolitan areas.

The main concern, however, is the increased demand produced by the excessive use of air conditioners and the overloading of the system, particularly when it was “weak to bear such a huge load.” He claimed that during the previous administration, Discos were unable to obtain material on time, causing the electrical system to malfunction in such hot heat.

“This is why the system is under stress, resulting in brownouts in major cities like Lahore.” “The situation is even worse in rural areas, where residents face 12 to 16 hours of power outages,” he continued.

When reached, a power division official stated that total generation on Saturday remained at 22,930MW, with hydropower accounting for 6,200MW, nuclear accounting for 3,100MW, thermal accounting for 12,800MW, and wind accounting for 830MW.

Gas-fired plants active

According to a petroleum ministry source, all gas-fired facilities were striving to make up the difference. “The SNGPL supplies 700 million cubic feet per day to all state-owned gas-fired power plants, including the Bhikki, Haveli Bahadur Shah, and Balloki thermal power plants.” “Some private plants are also receiving gas,” according to the source.

The shortage, according to the official, was caused by plants that ran on diesel and furnace oil and were currently in the “last category of merit order” for power generation in the country.

According to a Wapda source, overall hydel generation in peak hours remained at 6,000MW: over 2,800MW, 1,210MW, 1,150MW, and 230MW by Tarbela, Tarbela-4th Extension, Ghazi Barotha, and Mangla, respectively. “There is no generation by the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project due to rehabilitation works.”

Mangla’s electricity generation is currently low due to Irsa’s use of the water for irrigation, he added.

When approached, a Power Division spokeswoman denied to give any data on demand, generation, or shortage.

“It is difficult to predict the shortfall because it is a’sensitive figure’ that fluctuates a lot.” She stated that the information would be shared with Dawn once it was obtained from the relevant departments.