PSO receivables hit all-time high of Rs 302.5bn

ISLAMABAD: Receivables of the country’s largest oil supplier have reached an all-time high of Rs302.5 billion, which reflects the continuation of chronic circular debt.

State-owned Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has reported to the federal government that its receivables, mostly emanating from the power sector, increased to Rs302.5bn as of Oct 12, gradually inching up from Rs248bn on the same day last year.

The company’s receivables at the end of the PPP’s government peaked at Rs220bn in May 2013. The PML-N government cleared a circular debt worth Rs480bn through a controversial scheme of cash and book payments.

To highlight its financial sufferings, the company’s management has told the government that around 88.5 per cent, or Rs267bn, of its total dues was held up with the usual culprit – the power sector. The power sector’s unpaid bills outpaced PSO’s total receivables. This is evident from the fact that the power sector’s payables of Rs214bn to the oil supplier accounted for 87pc of total receivables last year, an official said.