Changes to three Punjab power plants’ GSAs okayed

For facilitating the proposed privatisation of power plants on a government-to-government (G2G) basis, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet on Wednesday approved changes to the gas sale agreements (GSAs) of three LNG-based power projects in Punjab — Balloki, Haveli Bahadur Shah and Bhikki. A meeting of the ECC, presided over by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, also allowed Pakistan Railways to enter into a business deal with the private sector for laying fibre-optic cables on profit sharing. It approved urea price at Rs2340 per bag for farmers and its incidental charges of Rs594 and Rs1008 per bag for transportation from Karachi and Gwadar, respectively. The government has been in talks with friendly governments in the Middle East for the sale of at least two LNG-based power plants — the most efficient so far — on a G2G basis to raise more than $2 billion direly needed to support the fast diminishing foreign exchange reserves.