Pakistan’s state-owned power distribution companies (DISCOs) have inflicted losses worth billions on the national exchequer, with official documents showing that their total deficit in the first quarter of the ongoing financial year has reached Rs 171 billion.
According to a Power Division report, DISCOs recorded Rs 87 billion in losses due to incompetence and electricity theft between July and September 2025, a figure that marks a significant strain on the country’s power sector. During the same period, losses in electricity receipts stood at Rs 84 billion.
Despite the staggering numbers, the document notes a year-on-year improvement. Compared with the corresponding period of 2024, total losses have dropped by Rs 68 billion.
From July to September 2024, DISCOs’ combined losses amounted to Rs 239 billion, including Rs 113 billion attributed to inefficiency and theft and Rs 126 billion in shortfalls from electricity receipts.
On an annual scale, the trend of declining losses has continued. In the financial year 2024-25, the total losses of DISCOs were recorded at Rs 397 billion, down from Rs 591 billion in the preceding fiscal year, a reduction of Rs 194 billion.
The report adds that DISCOs’ accumulated losses and under-recoveries remain a major contributor to the power sector’s circular debt, a long-standing challenge for Pakistan’s energy economy.