KARACHI: The National Electric and Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has admitted the K-Electric’s Power Acquisition Request (PAR) for the purchase of 11 MW net power from Lotte Chemical Pakistan Limited (LCPL). Earlier, in January 2017, the authority had dismissed the submitted PAR on the grounds that LCPL did not have a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) for usage of sanctioned gas for sale of surplus power to K-Electric. LCPL has now obtained the requisite NOC from SSGC. KE re-submitted PAR for the approval of the authority, the PAR for the purchase of 11 – 14 MW net power from LCPL under the IPPR. K-Electric has entered into a Power Acquisition Contract (PAC) with LCPL to procure 11MW to 14 MW power from LCPL’s 48.1 MW (gross capacity) Co-generation Captive Power Generation Unit at Port Qasim, Karachi, subject to mutually agreed terms & conditions and Nepra’s approvals and after completing all statutory requirements, legal review and obtaining all necessary approvals. In this regard, Nepra has announced to hold a public hearing on June 16 inlocla hotel here on a PAR that was submitted by K-Electric for the purchase of 11 MW net power from LCPL. LCPL owns a co-generation power plant with installed capacity of 48.1 MW based on full supply of gas (10.5 MMCFD at ISO conditions). The power plant is currently dedicated for supply of power to the LCPL’s Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA) manufacturing facility. Based on 9 MMCFD from SSGC, the unit can generate up to 38 MW Gross at site conditions. According to LCPL, they currently have a surplus power of 11 MW, which can increase to 14 MW once SSGC begins providing Regasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG) to LCPL, available after taking into account the requirements of PTA manufacturing, which it intends to sell to K-Electric. It is important to note here that SSGC has put a condition that once RLNG becomes available in SSGC system, the gas consumed for power supply to KE shall be billed to LCPL at the RLNG rate and the local gas rate shall no more apply. Thus, the fuel costs component of the tariff will change to RLNG from natural gas. The current allocation of 9 MMCFD shall also be used for power supply to KE. However, once the RLNG becomes available, the SSGC shall allocate an additional 3.5 MMCFD of RLNG for the purpose of power supply to KE. Once such 3.5 MMCFD of RLNG becomes available, the existing arrangement of using part of 9 MMCFD gas for power supply to KE shall cease permanently, said a document. This will result in increase in future the supply to KE from 11 MW on natural gas to 14 MW based on 3.5 MMSCFD of RLNG on as and when available basis pursuant to the gas supply agreement, to be execute between the gas supplier and LCPL.