In a landmark development for Pakistan’s energy sector, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has given the green light to the implementation of the Competitive Trading Bilateral Contract Market (CTBCM) — a key step toward transforming the country’s power sector into a competitive and transparent marketplace.
According to Nepra’s determination, the Market Operator (MO) has successfully completed the major prerequisites for market readiness, including the development and operation of the Market Management System (MMS), which has been in use since June 2022 for test settlements without any major glitches.
Nepra confirmed that most technical and procedural conditions under the Final Test Run (FTR) have been fulfilled, paving the way for commercial operation of the market. Only two areas — market participant enrolment and MMS benchmarking — remain pending and have been granted a three-month window for completion.
The regulator has also directed the Independent System and Market Operator (ISMO) to publish all relevant market data, including settlement statements and marginal prices from the past two years, to ensure transparency and open access to information.
In a move to build stakeholder confidence and preparedness, Nepra ordered a structured awareness campaign within one month of the market’s formal launch. The campaign will include workshops and seminars across major cities, engaging industrial consumers, generators, suppliers, and chambers of commerce to familiarize them with market rules, contracts, and pricing mechanisms.
The authority underscored that the Competitive Market Operations Date (CMOD) will be finalized once the grid charges are approved and the stranded cost framework is issued by the federal government under the National Electricity Plan.
Nepra noted that while the full deployment of the SCADA system remains pending, its absence does not hinder the commencement of CTBCM operations. However, ISMO has been asked to submit a detailed progress report on SCADA integration by December 2025, ensuring readiness for advanced market functions, including real-time and ancillary services trading.
The CTBCM marks Pakistan’s transition from a centralized single-buyer system to a competitive wholesale electricity market, a reform expected to promote efficiency, reduce costs, and attract private sector investment in the power sector.
