HYDERABAD: The Hyder-abad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) faces many structural, technical and design problems, hence it has been decided to increase the number of feeders from the present 40 and reduce their reach to improve power supply system, according to Chief Executive Officer Muzaffar Ali Abbasi.

Mr Abbasi at a gathering of members of Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HCCI) here on Saturday that Rs2.7 trillion circular debt, which was one of the major obstructions in clinching a deal with the International Monetary Fund, forced power companies to impose load management.

He said that Hesco planned to separate commercial and domestic feeders so that consumers in both categories did not have to face the burden of load management. Hesco was supposed to recover Rs135 billion dues from customers including government departments, he said.

“Since we [power utilities] sell electricity and don’t make recoveries against power supplies, it leads to increase in circular debt which forces us to resort to load management,” he said.

Power utility faces many structural, technical and design issues

He explained that whenever load management was carried out it undermined costly equipment of a power distribution company. “The load management for equipment is like inducing cardiac arrest in a person,” he said.

He said the jerks in feeders caused by load management rendered the equipment vulnerable to faults. Tripping caused losses and jeopardised system and hence was dangerous for the system. “Conductors often break during jerks,” he said.

He said that feeders’ reach was unnecessarily lengthy in Hesco’s system as many were stretched over 250kms which was not more than 25-30kms in developed countries. In cities, he said, the feeders’ reach was 25-30kms compared to 3-6kms in the developed world.

That was why, he said, Hesco had started bifurcating 40 feeders, which would increase number their number, and proper planning had been done in this regard. Unusual length of the feeders’ reach was primary cause of wrong billing and growing consumer complaints as well, he said.

Mr Abbasi said that a Damage Repair Transformer Cell (DRTC) approved by Board of Directors of Hesco was yielding good results. Now transformers were repaired within 24 hours and consumers were not asked to collect money for their repair. “No one will have to sell copper to get a transformer repaired with silver stuff which is detrimental to the transformer’s health and threat to human lives,” he said.

He disclosed that he wanted to separate industrial feeders from commercial ones. Likewise, he said, all the city feeders would be bifurcated. “Presently, one feeder energies industrial, domestic and commercial sectors although every sector has as its own dynamics,” he said.

Separation of feeders, he said, would lessen constraints in the system, reduce losses and wrong billing. Hesco had earmarked a huge budget for this purpose with BoD’s approval, he said.

Initially, he said, one feeder would be dedicated to offices, courts and organisations. He would consult HCCI president Adeel Siddiqui for forming an engineering committee to address identical issues in markets and shopping centers, he said.

He said that Shahi and Resham bazaars’ feeder had such a huge reach that it was dealt by four different sub-divisions and it was necessitating bifurcation because customers were using connections from multiple sources.

He admitted Rs220m outstanding, rightly or wrongly, were claimed against Resham bazaar’s shopkeepers and promised to address it. He said he doesn’t see objection in providing separate feeder for small industry and it would be done as quickly as possible in line with HCCI president’s demand.

He said that Hesco’s current recovery increased 72pc-75pc to 90pc but Nepra wanted it to be 100pc. Six out of 15 bucket-mounted vehicles had been procured and each of this multiple purpose vehicle had cost Rs15m, which would be very effective in addressing power transmission issues including cutting of trees, change of transformer, replacement of lines etc.

HCCI president urged Mr Abbasi to separate all commercial feeders and thanked him for procuring bucket mounted vehicles on the demand of HCCI. Load-shedding in the bazaars should also be minimized, he said.

Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2023