PM intervenes as coal supply to Sahiwal power plant is restored

ISLAMABAD: The government has reorganised Pakistan Railways’ freight transport setup after interruptions in coal deliveries to key base-load power plants in Punjab, as coal reserves at the 1,320-megawatt Sahiwal Power Plant dropped to levels sufficient for only a few days of operation.

According to Dawn, the Power Division raised the issue with the prime minister and the National Coordination and Management Committee (NCMC). The committee concluded that, instead of prolonged legal and procedural disputes between railway authorities and the plant management, the matter should have been settled amicably because of the national importance of keeping base-load power stations operational, particularly at a time when LNG-based generation capacity was largely unavailable.

A power sector official said the situation had now been brought under control and coal consignments for the Sahiwal plant were currently in transit. The official said, Starting early this week, we are comfortable with fuel supply arrangements.

Dawn quoted the official saying that if coal stocks had been exhausted, the shutdown of the plant would not have directly caused an additional 1,200MW power shortfall, but it could have created difficulties for grid stability at a time when the system was already under strain.

Railways freight team reshuffled

Sources said the railway leadership remained in place, but grade-19 and grade-20 officers were replaced to ensure smoother freight operations. They added that the chief executive of Pakistan Railways was allowed to proceed on 90-day ex-Pakistan leave.

According to official notifications, Waqar Ahmed Sheikh, a BS-20 executive director of Pakistan Railways Freight Transport Company (PRFTC), was transferred to Railway Headquarters in Lahore as chief operating superintendent, replacing Kashif Rasheed Yousfani, a BS-19 officer. Muhammad Ali Chachar, another BS-20 officer serving as director general operations, was appointed in place of Mr Sheikh.

In another change, a BS-20 officer from the commercial and transportation department, who had been posted in Quetta, was transferred to Peshawar as divisional superintendent. He was replaced by Mehmood-ur-Rehman Lakho, a BS-19 officer.

Similarly, Farman Ali, a BS-20 officer from Railway Civil Engineering Peshawar, was posted as divisional superintendent Sukkur, replacing Jamshaid Alam, a BS-19 officer. Mr Alam was then posted as divisional superintendent Karachi in place of Mr Lakho.

All of the changes were done this week due to Sahiwal power supplies, adding that, alongside external challenges, coal transportation problems had raised concerns over the reliability of around 1,500-1,800MW of coal-based generation when it was needed most.

Following the intervention of the Prime Minister's Office and the NCMC, the issues had been streamlined.