By News Desk
The Independent Power Producers (IPPs), comprising 90 private companies, have played a significant role in bringing the nation to the brink of financial crisis.
Lahore: Over the past three decades, Pakistan’s power sector has become a symbol of economic mismanagement and elite dominance. The Independent Power Producers (IPPs), comprising 90 private companies, have played a significant role in bringing the nation to the brink of financial crisis.
Ownership of these power companies reveals a concentrated grip by a few powerful groups. The Sharif family owns 28%, influential leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League (N), and Zardari’s affiliates hold 16% each. The Establishment controls another 10%, while Chinese investors own 8%, Arab (Qatari) investors 7%, and Pakistani entrepreneurs 7%. In total, just three groups—Sharif, Zardari, and the Establishment—own 78% of these companies.
This oligarchic control extends beyond the power sector. These same groups also dominate Pakistan’s industries, holding licenses for sugar mills, steel mills, cement, fertilizers, textiles, banks, LPG, and automobile manufacturing. Such monopoly has allowed these elites to manipulate the economy for their benefit.
Despite claiming a capacity to generate 125% of Pakistan’s total electricity demand, these power plants supply only 48%. Nevertheless, they charge the country for 125%, reaping enormous profits. Over the last five years alone, Pakistan has paid approximately 6,000 billion rupees to these companies, yet the country’s debt to them has soared to 2,900 billion rupees.
This systemic issue highlights how a small elite controls vital sectors of the economy, draining national resources and hindering Pakistan’s development. The question remains: how long can the nation sustain this economic drain while the power sector continues to benefit a privileged few?
Reminder that this story shared in whatsApp group” PRESS OF PAKISTAN” by Senior journalist and Former Secretary Lahore Press Club Zia Ullah Niazi.
