Karachi faces 54 MGD water shortage after electricity supply to NEK Pumping Station suspended: KWSC

The Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC) on Sunday reported a water supply shortfall of 54 million gallons per day (MGD) after a fault in K-Electric’s main cable disrupted power to the North East Karachi (NEK) Pumping Station.

According to KWSC, the outage began at 3:27am on May 31, affecting operations at the K-II Pumping Station and partially disrupting the city’s water supply. The utility warned that the shortage could worsen if the cable fault is not repaired promptly.

KWSC said it immediately contacted K-Electric, which dispatched a technical team to assess the issue. KE officials reportedly confirmed that the disruption was caused by a fault in the main power cable serving the K-II station.

As an interim measure, electricity was partially restored at 5:50am through a backfeed arrangement from the K-III feeder. However, KWSC noted that the alternative supply lacks sufficient capacity to fully resume pumping operations.

The corporation cautioned that the reduced pumping capacity may affect water distribution schedules across several parts of Karachi. It urged K-Electric to undertake urgent and permanent repairs while continuing efforts to restore normal water supply.

The development comes a day after an emergency power shutdown at the Dhabeji Pumping Station disrupted water services in multiple areas of the city.

Karachi has been grappling with a prolonged water crisis since late March, driven by pipeline leaks, transmission line bursts, power outages at pumping stations, and other technical issues.

The situation has left many residents reliant on water tankers and private suppliers, while rising costs and supply shortages continue to create difficulties for households across the metropolis.