- The amount lent of WB exceeds the real cost of solar kits.
- Solar DC fans distributed by altering import documents.
- The Sindh Minister says that relevant documents will be provided.
Serious questions have emerged about alleged irregularities and transparency in contracts related to the flagship project of the Popular Party of Pakistan, the solar energy project Sindh (SSEP), The news reported on Sunday.
The first phase of this project, financed by the World Bank with RS28 billion, aimed to distribute 200,000 solar housing systems. A foreign company reported the cost of each solar kit as $ 151, but import documents revealed that the real price was less than $ 50.
The foreign company was also supposed to import DC’s solar fans. However, instead of these, fans made in Pakistan were distributed by altering import documents, and tariffs and taxes were claimed based on supposedly false import documents.
Geographical newsThe presenter of ‘program “Naya Pakistan” Shahzad Iqbal and executive producer Syed Hassam Ahmed Warsi brought important facts related to the alleged irregularities in the SSEP in light for the first time.
Reacting to this research report during the show, Provincial Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah said there are no irregularities in the SSEP, and that the relevant documents would be provided.
When asked if the low price of the solar unit registered in the commercial invoice given to customs by the company constitutes the lack of invocation, Shah replied that if the lack of invocation occurred, the private company did it.
Regarding the import of fans, he said that if false documents were created to show incorrect imports, the Sindh government would carry out an investigation and bring the matter to light.
The SSEP was announced by the president of PPP, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, during his electoral campaign, promising to provide 300 free electricity units if he was elected Prime Minister.
The Sindh government has begun to distribute solar housing systems to thousands of homes deserving in Karachi and 30 districts of the province during the past year.
In the first phase of the Sindh government project, it is claimed that WB loans provided solar systems to approximately 200,000 homes. However, significant questions and objections have been raised about transparency and delays in this RS28 billion project.
After the questions raised in the Permanent Committee of the Senate chaired by Senator Saifullah Abro, an investigation on this matter began, and there were more issues of alleged irregularities that amounted to billions of rupees, the lack of transparency in the contracts and alterations in the documentary records arose.
The Sindh government had announced last July that it would provide solar housing systems to low -network households or those that use less than 100 electricity units. The objective was established to provide solar systems to 200,000 homes in a month.
The Provincial Government considers the SSE to its flagship initiative. According to this program, solar housing systems are provided to households included in the Benazir Income support program (BISP), which includes a solar panel, a battery, a DC fan, three LED bulbs and an installation to load mobile phones.
The authorities estimated that the total cost of a complete solar housing unit is approximately $ 208, or approximately RS55,000. The Sindh government has received funds of $ 100 million, or approximately RS28 billion, from the WB for this project, and states that the project is being monitored by the same WB.
However, questions and objections continue to emerge regarding the project. This May, during a meeting of the Permanent Committee of Economic Affairs of the Senate, chaired by Senator Abro, questions were asked about the lack of transparency in the distribution of solar systems and delays in the implementation of the project.
On June 23, Sindh’s department of Energy wrote to the director of the Mahfooz Ahmed Qazi project, instructing seven SSP officers who appear before the Investigation Committee, but results have not yet been made public results of this investigation.
“Naya Pakistan” also contacted Qazi to know his position, but refrained from commenting on record or providing his position due to his government work.
Although questions were raised in the Senate Committee regarding the delays in the implementation of the project, the role of NGOs and the distribution under the BISP, the problem is not only about project delays or the lack of transparency in the distribution of solar systems.
According to the revelations and documents presented during “Naya Pakistan”, the matter seems to be much more serious. The Sindh government states that, according to phase 1 of this project, 200,000 solar housing systems would be distributed to the public, with a unit price of $ 151.31.
If $ 56.3 are included in taxes, this amounts to approximately $ 208, or RS55,000, per unit. A WB loan for this project has been taken, which will finally be paid for the public’s pockets.
The documentary evidence available with “Naya Pakistan” indicates that the real price of the solar systems provided by the Sindh government is supposedly much less than $ 151, which suggests that the amount borrowed of the WB exceeds the real cost of the solar kits.
According to the documents obtained by “Naya Pakistan”, a private company cited the government of Sindh a price of $ 112.44 per unit for the solar housing system in the contribution document.
Including taxes and tariffs, this amounts to $ 151.79, which includes a controller, drums, LED light, LED cable, photovoltaic cable, assembly structure and a USB cable for mobile load.
However, the commercial invoice of the same company, which is available with “Naya Pakistan”, shows that the price quoted for this solar housing system is much lower than $ 112.
This document indicates that on October 24, 2024, the company imported 20,808 kits of solar housing systems, and its price was not $ 112 but only $ 23.4 per unit, which is approximately five times lower than the original price.
According to the bill of the same private company, the foreign company exported 20,808 kits to a local company in Pakistan at a rate of $ 23.4 per unit.
Therefore, the question arises from why there is such a significant difference between the real price of a solar kit imported from China and the estimated price. In this sense, “Naya Pakistan” tried to contact the foreign company to know its position, but despite the repeated attempts, the foreign company did not provide an answer.
The Sindh government also claimed to provide an imported solar DC fan with this solar kit. However, the documents available with “Naya Pakistan” indicate that fans distributed to the public were not imported, but were bought in Pakistan.
It is alleged that false documents were created to show the importation of these fans, through which the Sindh government then claimed fraudulent tariffs and taxes.
The documents presented in the program reveal that the importation of solar DC fans is mentioned in column No. 42 of the customs bill. According to this document, the foreign company exported 25,300 fans to its Pakistani agent at a rate of $ 23.5 per unit.
Interestingly, according to the company’s own website, fanatics that are distributed are manufactured in Pakistan and are exported from Pakistan to foreign countries. This raises the question of how there is an import document when these fans occur in Pakistan and were not imported from China.
According to our sources, the reason for this discrepancy is that the document is false, since there are two entrance invoices for the same machine number.
The machine number for imported fans is recorded as KPPI-HC-32166. However, there is another entrance bill for the same machine number, which lists the importation of lithium batteries. Supposedly, all this was done to claim customs tariffs and government taxes, based on fraudulent import documents for DC fans.
In addition, a document from the Customs Compensation Agency was presented in the program, which mentions the tax and
According to this document, the company claimed tariffs and customs taxes. Supposedly, according to the false entrance bill, claims were presented for approximately RS127 million depending on $ 18 in tariffs and taxes for 25,300 fans.
In addition, the Sindh government concluded a contract with the foreign company for $ 151 per unit without tariffs and taxes, according to the company’s offer. According to this contract, a WB loan was taken.
However, according to the documents, the company that won the contract exported solar housing systems only $ 23.4 per unit. Similarly, the import of fans was shown at $ 23.5.
This means that the total value of the entire solar kit was less than $ 50, however, the Sindh government hired the foreign company at a cost of $ 151, which implies that the total cost of 200,000 solar kits without tariffs and taxes was approximately 8.5 billion rupees.
If we also include the almost RS1 billion granted to NGOs for the distribution of solar housing systems, the total cost of the project without tariffs and taxes amounts to RS9.5 billion.
Therefore, now the question arises: why is there such a significant difference between the price that the Sindh government is stating and the difference of $ 100 per unit in import documents?
According to this difference, under phase 1, a difference of $ 100 for 200,000 solar units amounts to RS5.6 billion. Similarly, if false duties are claimed for 200,000 fans, it amounts to more than RS1 billion.
In total, a discrepancy of RS6.5 billion in the project is emerging. This raises the question of why there is such a large difference between the estimated cost of the project and the real price.
In the second phase of this project, even more irregularities and problems related to the lack of transparency in the contract are coming to light.
In this sense, International Pakistan transparency (TIP) has written another letter to the Prime Minister of Sindh, Syed Murad Ali Shah, highlighting serious violations of the Public Procurement rules of Sindh in the award of the SSEP contract, as well as complaints about the purchase of solar units at inflated prices.
The letter establishes that the complaints received by TIP claim that the Sindh cabinet approved a contract directly with a subsidiary of a government company, which constitutes a violation of the Public Procurement rules of Sindh.
However, after the contract was awarded, the government company unilaterally changed the agreement to include another subsidiary company, despite the contract that stipulates that it could not be transferred in its entirety or partly to anyone else.
According to the letter, it has also been revealed that the price of a bought unit was inflated to $ 135, while its market price is $ 84 per unit. This additional cost has resulted in a loss of approximately $ 21 million or RS6 billion. The letter recommends that the CM investigates the matter.
