KARACHI: Three main industrial areas out of the city's four, especially situated close to residential localities, are equally facing severe power outages which not only causing production losses but also affecting workers' efficiency.

Industrialists said the efficiency of workers had been affected as they were having sleepless nights since the KESC had started long power outages in residential areas for the last few days.

However, Korangi Association of Industry (KATI) Chairman Mian Zahid Hussain claimed that there was no loadshedding in the main Korangi industrial area. 'Only those units and commercial centres are facing problems which are located close to residential areas.'

He added that the KESC had already been asked to maintain power supply in order to avoid production losses and unemployment of workers.

Chairman North Karachi Association of Trade and Industry (NKATI) Younus Khamisani said that the KESC had been resorted to 10-hour long power interruption to the area with five-hour in the day time and same practice was being repeated in the nights for the last three days.

He said that the National Electricity and Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) had issued show-cause notice to the KESC for conducting massive power breakdowns a month back but its outcome was yet to be felt. And another round of worst breakdowns had been started by the power utility.

Site Association of Industry (SAI) Chairman Engr M.A. Jabbar said 50 per cent of units, which are mixed up with residential areas, were now facing massive power failures, while rest of the main industries were not affected.

Site has 10,000 units in which 20-30 per cent units have captive power plants while over 500 big units have standby generators.

Chairman F.B. Area Association of Trade and Industry (FBATI) Idris Gigi said that many industrial units were complaining that they were facing one to three hour power failure after receiving four to five hour normal power supply.

He said KESC had adopted a new way of cutting power supply by declaring it as cable fault or some other problems.

'Production goes further slow after massive power failures by the KESC,' he said, adding that this has been happening since Friday. The area has 2,600 units in which three to four units had captive power stations while 40-50 per cent had standby generators.

He said that one cannot run generators for longer period as it cost Rs20 per unit after increase in diesel and petrol prices as compared to Rs16 per unit previously.