Unannounced Evening Power Cuts Hit Lahore as Tarbela Faults Cut Supply

Lahore has been experiencing up to four hours of unannounced load-shedding each evening after technical faults in the Tarbela and Mangla hydropower systems took two Tarbela generating units out of service, according to reports. The disruption has reduced electricity availability and widened the supply gap in the city, other parts of Punjab and several regions across the country.

The shortfall within the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) network has reached 800 megawatts (MW), which officials link to the evening outages of up to four hours. Power generation at Tarbela Dam has reportedly fallen to 656 MW with the two affected units offline.

The disruption has been linked to an incident at the construction site of the Tarbela 5th Extension Hydropower Project (T-5) on Monday. A weak section of rock gave way during excavation, allowing water to enter a tunnel and the powerhouse. The Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) confirmed that all workers were evacuated safely.

The T-5 project has encountered difficulties in the past, including a cofferdam collapse that pushed its cost up by 285%. No timeline has yet been announced for returning the affected Tarbela units to service.

The Ministry of Energy (Power Division) has directed all power distribution companies to immediately publish their load-shedding schedules so consumers know when outages may occur. LESCO and other companies had not issued a formal schedule at the time of reporting.

The latest outages come weeks after Pakistan's nationwide power shortfall exceeded 4,000 MW, underscoring continuing pressure on the country's electricity supply as winter demand patterns set in.