SSGC rejects K-Electric's claim of gas supply shortage
June 25, 2020
KARACHI: The Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) on Thursday dismissed claims of reduction of gas supply to K-Electric (KE) and maintained that the supply has been increased from 50 million cubic feet (MMcf) to 240 MMcf.
"Despite a shortage of gas, more gas is being supplied to the power distributor," the SSGC spokesperson said.
The intensity of power outages in the metropolis has risen in the past week and have made life miserable for Karachi residents, already enduring a trying summer with temperatures sometimes crossing 40°C.
On Wednesday many citizens took to the roads to protest against the prolonged outages.
Among areas to witness unannounced power cuts were various other neighbourhoods of Korangi and Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Liaquatabad, North Karachi, Kharadar, F B Area, Khadda Market, Lyari, and Orangi Town.
Residents found it increasingly difficult to stay indoors even as a lockdown was enforced in many parts due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Some areas, such as Liaquatabad C1, reported power restoration after an 18-hour long outage, only to be disrupted against close to 11pm.
Many believe KE is cutting off power “under the pretext of technical faults”.
Also read: Nepra orders KE to submit detailed report on unannounced power cuts in Karachi
KE's response to the conundrum
In response to citizens’ complaints, KE had issued a statement to explain the cause behind the frequent outages.
It had claimed that a shortage in supply of furnace oil and gas had led to the power cuts.
According to a KE spokesperson, the supply of fuel in line with the demand is the responsibility of “relevant institutions”.
Furthermore, according to the power distributor, load shedding is taking place in areas where nonpayment of dues had been identified.
It is important to note that when a lockdown was imposed in Karachi towards the end of March, the city witnessed little to no power cuts till May 9. As soon as the lockdown was eased, power outages began to occur and have since grown in frequency and duration.
