Federal Minister for Energy Awais Leghari, while addressing a press conference, strongly criticized the performance of K-Electric and said that K-Electric failed to make timely electricity payments, which led to an increase in circular debt.
He stated that by November 30, 2025, outstanding dues had reached Rs 300 billion, while more than Rs 600 billion in subsidies had been taken over the past five years. The government has successfully negotiated with IPPs, resulting in a reduction in electricity prices, and for the first time, decisions were made purely on merit by cancelling future expensive projects with a total capacity of 8,000 megawatts.
As a result of these measures, the country is estimated to have saved more than 17 billion dollars. He said that 8,700 megawatts of surplus electricity is currently available, and the claim that take-or-pay contracts were not reviewed is incorrect. The government bears the cost of transmission losses, while the recovery rate has been increased to 96.6 percent within one year. He added that debt repayment will be completed within the next five to six years.
Regarding recent load shedding, the minister said there are multiple reasons, including fog causing transmission lines to trip.
The federal minister also said that NEPRA’s State of Industry Report should have been released in August 2025, but due to insufficient data, the report created misunderstandings. He added that the debt service surcharge was imposed on K-Electric and other DISCOs due to their responsibility for the increase in circular debt.
