RPPs likely to produce 510MW

ISLAMABAD - Out of the total 2250 megawatt Rental Power Plants approved by the government, only 510 megawatt plants are likely to be operational by the end of December this year or start of next year, TheNation reliably learnt.
It has been learnt that 200 megawatts rental power electricity might be added to the system during the next year in addition to the above-mentioned figure. The remaining plants are not likely to built as the Finance Division has refused to provide funds to the Ministry of Water and Power for making advance payments to those plants.
The government had pledged RPPs 14 percent mobilisation advance to facilitate the installation of plants. Reliable sources have informed that the said pledge of the government was unnecessary and the Finance Division has refused to make any further payment to the Water and Power Ministry after giving it Rs. 15 billion last month.
The Ministry had demanded for Rs. 35 to 40 billion from the Finance Division. However, the Finance Division provided the Ministry Rs. 15 billion and completely refused any further amount for the purpose.
The sources added that the Ministry had given Rs. 15 billion mobilisation in advance to some plants and those would get operational but the remaining plants that have not received any money have not even submitted bank guarantees. The sources revealed that some plants including Karkey Power, Samundri Road Faisalabad plant, Gulf Diamond Power Faisalabad and Guddu Power Plant might be operational by the end of December this year with power generation capacity of 510 megawatt.
The sources said that two other plants in addition to the above-mentioned have been paid the amount and these all might be working by the end of this year or start of next year but others might be considered rolled back because they do not seem to intend on submitting bank guarantees without prior assurance of mobilisation advance from the government, which the government is not in a position to commit.
The sources also said that Finance Division is of the view that the government unnecessarily made commitments of mobilisation advance that make no sense. According to the mentioned division, business is not done in this way. The investors should invest on their own and take the electricity charges from the government, which is the proper way it should have been done, the sources added.
Finance Divisions point of view is that If the government is to give a mobilisation advance of 14 percent and is also responsible for helping the plant owners get loans from banks then what are the plant owners responsible for, and this makes the whole deal unnatural, the sources maintained.