News

An energy strategy conundrum

Pakistan’s energy sector is a pertinent example of a systemic issue that extends beyond mere implementation challenges. This sector grapples with persistent policy inconsistencies and ambiguities, an obsolete governance model influenced by vested interests, and unprofessional management. There is a notable lack of coordination along energy supply chains and among various energy subsectors — a fail

The cost of petty politics

Pakistan’s challenges to political stability and economic revival are enormous and not very dissimilar. The repeated use of protests as a tool by the PTI to achieve its political goals over the last couple of years has hardly helped the cause of the economy. The political tumult has compounded these economic challenges as the country is ranked amongst the politically most volatile economies global

Hefty fines imposed on 10 sugar mills for tax violations

The Federal Board of Revenue has imposed hefty fines on 10 sugar mills for tax violations as part of a campaign to improve compliance and similar action against 10 other mills is nearing completion, Dawn has learnt from official sources. After start of the sugarcane crushing season for 2024-25, the Federal Board of Revenue launched an improved production monitoring system for sugar. As a result

World Bank, govt join hands to woo investment in Discos

The World Bank is currently working with the government to invite private sector participation in the distribution sector, starting with the best-performing power distribution companies (Discos). The success of this initial initiative could pave the way for the private sector participation in under-performing Discos. However, Discos’ poor financial health remains a significant barrier. An As

CORPORATE WINDOW: EV transition — in with the new?

Even as the draft of the New Energy Vehicle Policy (NEVP) 2025-2030 predicts a 30 per cent share of new electric vehicles by 2030, 90pc by 2040, and 100pc by 2050, it has not seriously touched the main issue of removing decades-old vehicles responsible for polluting air quality and promoting smog. With business as usual, the government expects to increase its fuel import bill to $64 billion by