ISLAMABAD: The Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) has formally distanced itself from Pakistan’s ongoing electricity crises, including inflated billing, power outages, and infrastructure failures.
In a comprehensive clarifying statement issued via his official X (formerly Twitter) account, WAPDA Chairman Lieutenant General (Retd) Muhammad Saeed revealed that the authority continues to be wrongfully inundated with thousands of legal notices and public grievances for issues completely outside its jurisdiction.
WAPDA’s unbundling, initiated in 1997 was completed in 2007 . Consequently, all area electricity boards were converted into DISCOS and were placed under power division , ministry of energy along with NTDC ( currently known as NGC) . During the same year , WAPDA was placed under…
— Lt Gen Saeed (retd) (@msaeed26198) June 30, 2026
The Chairman emphasized that following a structural unbundling process that concluded nearly two decades ago, WAPDA holds absolutely zero administrative or operational responsibility over the country’s electricity distribution network.
According to the statement, a massive corporate restructuring program initiated in 1997 effectively stripped the legacy authority of its singular monopoly over the power sector. By 2007, the transition was complete:
All regional electric supply boards were permanently sliced away from WAPDA, transformed into corporate Distribution Companies (DISCOs), and placed under the direct control of the federal Power Division.
The country’s high-voltage transmission lines were handed over to the National Transmission & Despatch Company (NTDC), which has since been restructured into the National Grid Company (NGC).
WAPDA itself was administratively reassigned under the Ministry of Water Resources.
“For nearly two decades, WAPDA has had no role in electricity transmission, billing collection, or the maintenance of distribution infrastructure,” Lt. Gen. (Retd) Saeed clarified.
The institutional frustration stems from a deeply rooted public misconception that treats “WAPDA” as a catch-all term for any electricity provider in Pakistan.
The Chairman explained that WAPDA’s modern mandate is strictly confined to macro-level water resource management. This includes the engineering of mega-dams, irrigation canals, and bulk hydropower generation. While WAPDA-operated plants generate massive volumes of cheap electricity, this power is sold directly to the national grid at the generation point. From that precise moment onward, the authority exits the supply chain entirely.
Despite this, consumers facing issues with domestic billing, solar net-metering delays, blown transformers, or local load-shedding regularly flood WAPDA’s offices with complaints.
The Chairman warned that this misplaced finger-pointing is actively hindering consumer relief. By directing grievances to WAPDA and waiting for responses, citizens are squandering critical windows to have their issues resolved by the actual responsible entities.
The authority has strongly advised consumers to bypass WAPDA entirely and take all localized power complaints directly to their respective regional DISCOs for immediate administrative action.
