Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has rejected CPEC power projects payment issues, saying Chinese independent power producers (IPPs)—private plants that sell electricity to the grid—set up under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) are receiving payments on time.
Speaking in Islamabad while presenting the Monthly Development Update for October 2026 on Thursday, he answered a query about Rs500 billion in claimed outstanding dues to Chinese IPPs. He said there were no outstanding dues and that payments were being processed through the routine mechanism.
What the minister said on CPEC IPPs
Iqbal’s message was that CPEC power plants linked to Chinese investors are being paid as normal, not held back by arrears. He framed CPEC power projects payment issues as misplaced, arguing the system was clearing dues in the ordinary way rather than through any special backlog.
Independent power producers are plants built with private capital under contracts with the power purchaser. Under CPEC, several such plants were developed with Chinese partners. Timely payment claims matter because delayed settlement can strain plant operations and bilateral project confidence, though Iqbal did not describe any plant outage or contract change.
Other points from the October update
In the same briefing, Iqbal said a committee including Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, himself and Rana Sanaullah, with Jamaat-e-Islami representatives, would examine options for extending relief and a phased cut in the petroleum levy in the next budget. He also called for reforms to cut power generation costs, curb losses and theft, and lower tariffs for industry.
He presented wider economic figures for the early months of FY2026-27, including merchandise export growth, remittance inflows and a current account deficit that widened to $874 million from $755 million. Inflation, he said, eased to 10.3% in September from 11.1% in August. Those figures sit outside the CPEC payment claim but formed the backdrop to his development presentation.
What happens next
Iqbal did not announce a new payment schedule or a fresh fiscal package for Chinese IPPs. On energy affordability more broadly, the committee’s work on petroleum levy relief is tied to the next budget rather than an immediate cut. For CPEC electricity projects, his public position remains that dues are current and the routine process is in place.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Planning minister Ahsan Iqbal ne kaha hai ke CPEC ke Chinese power plants ko paisa waqt par mil raha hai. Rs500 arab ke pending bill wali baat unhon ne nahi mani. Unke mutabiq yeh adaygiyan normal process se ho rahi hain. Bijli ke kharch aur petrol levy ki madad ka alag jaiza next budget ke liye committee dekh rahi hai.
