As the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has made a pledge of reducing electricity tariff further for domestic and industrial consumers through power sector reforms the Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front (PIAF) on Sunday hailed the commitment of the government to cut the cost of production. PIAF Chairman Faheemur Rehman Saigol, in a joint statement along with senior vice chairman Nasrullah Mughal and vice chairman Tahir Manzoor Chaudhary said that low-cost environment-friendly electricity should be provided to the industry. Faheem Saigol pointed out that revisiting agreements with the Independent Power Producers led to savings for the national exchequer and reduced the price of electricity for consumers. He said the reduction in deficits of power distribution companies (Discos) due to a campaign against electricity theft was made possible because of the hard work of the Ministry of Power and supporting institutions. Nasrullah Mughal said it was a good sign that the ministry and the relevant departments were cooperating to rectify defects of the last seven decades. He said that bringing down losses for Discos by speeding up the campaign against electricity theft is the right decision. Tahir Manzoor Chaudhary pointed out that the performance of Discos improved after the appointment of board members with good reputations from the private sector. More members of good reputation from the private sector should be appointed to the boards of the remaining Discos, he said, adding that the reduction in distribution losses resulted from reforms. He continued that the tariffs for domestic and industrial consumers would be further reduced. The meeting was also briefed on targets to improve power sector performance in the next three years. It was said that the receipts of the Discos reached 93.26 per cent by December 2024 due to the reforms and the campaign against electricity theft. PIAF leadership said that government’s external financing needs will remain significant in the coming year, despite progress in rebuilding its foreign exchange reserves. The government needs to repay over $22 billion in external debt in the fiscal year 2025, including nearly $13 billion in bilateral deposits. Securing sufficient external financing remains a challenge, considering large maturities and lenders’ existing exposures. Last month, the country agreed on a $1 billion loan with two Middle Eastern banks at a 6-7% interest rate. Pakistan’s central bank chief earlier said the country aims to raise up to $4 billion from Middle Eastern commercial banks by the next fiscal year. To address its external financing needs from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other multilateral and bilateral lenders, Fitch said Pakistan needs to continue implementing structural reforms, including those related to fiscal consolidation and improving its business environment. Pakistan is undergoing reforms under a $7 billion IMF program, which is up for its first review later this month. The program aims to help Pakistan address deep-rooted economic issues such as its large fiscal and current account deficits. “Deteriorating external liquidity, for example linked to delays in IMF reviews, could lead to negative action.