Govt has reduced monthly circular debt

Aug 30, 2019: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Petroleum, Nadeem Babar Thursday said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), government had reduced monthly circular debt to a single digit due to effective policies.

Talking to a private news channel, he said the monthly circular debt stood at Rs 38 billion when PTI government came into power in 2018, which had now been reduced to a single digit.

The total circular debt, reported in August 2018, amounted to Rs 453 billion and after taking charge, the present government decided to reduce this circular debt to Rs 325 billion till June 2019.

He said that circular debt of power sector was Rs 156 billion and the government had received Rs 136 billion as recovery. He added that government had decided to decrease monthly circular debt to zero by December 2020.

To a question, the special assistant said many initiatives were in pipeline including increasing recoveries, privatization of institutions and closing of inefficient plants to control circular debt.

He said changes would be made in consultation with Independent Power Plants (IPPs) regarding contract.

Reforms were being introduced in Energy, Oil and Gas sectors, he added.

The special assistance informed that government approved establishment of five more LNG terminals in the country, adding that these terminals would be set up on private basis. Babar further stated that the government had nothing to pay in that regard.

He said government was trying to remove reservation of foreign companies investing in this country.

The companies would be given benefits for exploring oil and gas reserves in Pakistan, he added.

APP