NTDC failure to cost consumers Rs80b

National Transmission & Despatch Company (NTDC)’s failure to lay transmission lines to evacuate electricity from Thar coal-based power plants has come under fire again, with concerns that this could burden consumers with a cost of up to Rs80 billion. Despite the reduction in electricity rates for February 2023, on account of fuel adjustment charges, consumers of power distribution companies (Discos) may still face higher tariffs if previous adjustments of Rs6.3 billion due to system constraints are allowed. The tariff could increase by Rs0.85 per unit if such adjustments are allowed. During a public hearing conducted by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA), NTDC requested an adjustment of Rs6.7 billion due to the failure of evacuating power from Thar coal-based power plants. This was met with serious concerns from NEPRA, which questioned why NTDC had not made proper planning and due diligence to lay the transmission lines, taking into account the timelines of Thar coal-based power plants. The hearing revealed that electricity demand would increase during the summer, and the country would require higher electricity generation. NTDC officials said that two transmission lines were already in place to evacuate 1400 MW electricity, with two more lines expected to become operational in April to evacuate 2400 MW electricity from Thar coal-based plants.