Ending Pakistan’s recurring electricity crises — a seven-point action plan

Power outages are a nuisance in general but they become demonic when they encompass an entire country, extend beyond 15 hours, and occur twice in three months. Then they become a blackout. That’s exactly what happened on January 23. What was unusual about this blackout was that it came within months of a previous one in October and that it occurred in the winter when demand is less than half that of the summer. Pakistan’s electric grid has been lurching from crisis to crisis going back decades. On January 3, a cabinet minister, who was interestingly the minister for defence and not for energy, asked businesses to close early, saying that the nation had to conserve fuel, much of which is imported. Shopping malls, restaurants and hotels were told to close by 8:30pm and wedding halls by 10:00pm. The minister claimed that this measure would save the nation Rs62 billion. An announcement was issued, saying that Pakistan would stop making incandescent light bulbs and inefficient electric fans. It claimed that by ending the production of incandescent light bulbs, the nation would save Rs22bn. Streetlights would be operated for only half the time, saving another Rs92bn. This measure may be imprudent since street lights promote safe driving and deter crime. The government also announced a 30 per cent reduction in electricity use by federal buildings.