A pattern of flawed energy choices

Pakistan’s power generation capacity expansion process continues to face credibility challenges despite being regularly conducted with an established regulatory framework. Consequently, the government has built power plants to cater to a demand that is simply not there, leaving Pakistan with more electricity than it can consume and more capacity payments than it can afford. There is a consistent pattern of government institutions, bureaucrats and politicians repeatedly making ill-informed last-minute decisions, resulting in the disaster we see in the energy sector today. The latest iteration of the Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP 2024) — a document providing insights into long-term generation expansion planning of the National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) since 2021 — is reflective of this flawed planning process.