Discos involved Rs 591B Power Theft: Leghari
Staff Report
Islamabad: Federal Minister for Energy Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari on Thursday said that power distribution companies were involved in power theft worth Rs 591 billion.
During the fiscal year 2023–24, the ten government-run power distribution companies had placed a burden of Rs 591 billion on the country and taxpayers.
“We have successfully reduced the power theft from Rs 591 billion to Rs 399 billion,” Leghari said while addressing a press conference.
He said that power division had made significant progress in introducing reforms that resulted in improvement in power sector under the directives of the Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
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However, this is the first time in history that government had reduced such losses through focused reforms.
He said that the government had already made the process of appointing board members transparent.
He further emphasized the need to inform the public about the scale and reasons behind the losses distribution companies are facing.
Had these losses not faced, the country could have paid off debt, initiated development schemes in various areas, and used taxpayers’ money for national progress,” Leghari said adding that the Prime Minister, the entire cabinet, and the government’s coalition partners were seriously concerned about these losses.
Therefore, the government had launched a campaign to cut losses aimed at bringing improvement in the power firms one year ago.
On the Prime Minister’s instructions, the government took the initiative to implement good governance reforms and appointments in boards and companies were made on merit. It ended the long-standing practice of hiring based on personal connections and political recommendations.
Due to these reforms, he said, the government has reduced the losses from Rs 591 billion to Rs 399 billion—a target achieved even before the target deadline. Despite facing challenges, the process of reforms will continue.
Leghari pointed out that the financial figures for the fiscal year ending on June 30 are encouraging.
He said that there are two major losses as there are recovery losses which companies face when electricity bills are not collected.
The second type is Technical and non-technical (T&D) losses when companies supply electricity but not billed, which is essentially electricity theft.
Out of the total Rs 591 billion in losses, Rs 315 billion were due to non-recovery of bills. The government had to bear this loss. The overall recovery rate of electricity bills was 92.4% last year and jumped up to 96.6% for first time in history. However, power companies failed to recover Rs 132 billion in bills this year.
He further shared that Rs 276 billion worth of electricity was stolen last year. Distribution companies worked hard to reduce these losses. Some companies succeeded in reducing line losses, resulting in a savings of Rs 11 billion by curtailing electricity theft.
The minister also shared detailed performance figures of all distribution companies. He said LESCO performed particularly well and uncovered a massive electricity theft scandal.
However, he noted that some influential people were now trying to launch inquiries against those who took action against electricity theft.
The Prime Minister, he said, is committed to support the officers and staff who were leading the battle for reforms and continuing their efforts to stop theft.
He also highlighted the scale of the problem that a single furnace-based industry steals more electricity in a month than an entire village does in five years. In the past, action was mostly taken against small consumers, while large-scale theft went unnoticed.
This year, he said, the focus will be on controlling large-scale losses and industrial theft, so that the progress made during the past year can continue.
