Nandipur haste

It was Shahbaz Sharif’s irrational haste to complete the 525MW Nandipur Power Project that backfired. But the irony is that the Punjab chief minister has blamed the previous PPP government for the Nandipur fiasco that in fact was completed and made operational under the PML-N government. One wonders what cost overruns and mishandling of technical matters have to do with the law minister of the previous PPP government.
The PML-N won the 2013 elections mainly on the basis of its promise to overcome the energy crisis. Clearly, it has failed to deliver on this promise – so far. It is time the PML-N government shared the factsheet of its performance with the people of the country. They need to know the financial and operational facts of the Nandipur project. What are the cost overruns and their reasons? What is the capital and operational cost of the project as compared with other power projects running in the country? How much does it cost to produce a unit of electricity at Nandipur compared to other power projects’ unit cost operating in the country?
Ejaz Ahmad Magoon
Lahore