The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a loan of US$167.2m for eight distribution companies in Pakistan to improve the power distribution system to help provide reliable, regular electricity to businesses and domestic consumers.The investment is part of an ADB US$810m Power Distribution Enhancement Investment Program approved in 2008. The multitranche financing facility (MFF) targets investment in priority areas to reduce power losses and increase the reliability of the power distribution system.
The investments are divided among all eight publicly owned power distribution companies totalling 284 subprojects. The first tranche of the MFF is already completed and has shown satisfactory results across Pakistan. The second and third tranches are on track and due to be completed by September 2015 and December 2016 respectively. Through the MFF facility, ADB has already provided financial assistance for the upgrading of 360 grid stations (66 kV and 132 kV), of which 175 stations have already been completed. The loan is the fourth of the MFF and will increase distribution capacity at 282 grid stations, adding 5,021 MVA of transformer capacity.