Pakistan’s energy crisis is not just an entrenched harsh reality but also a persisting one. Tolling under its weight for more than a decade, the country is no closer to solving the problem that plagues not only its incapacitated economy but also the ability to revive it. Power cuts are responsible for pruning off two percent of our GDP annually, a stark and problematic number for a developing economy like Pakistan. The government is struggling to fulfil its election pledges of mega power plant generation to end daily power cuts, a mere sailor’s promise considering that the real focus should also highlight the capacity of our national grid to carry the added weight of power transmission and distribution. Unfortunately, our national grid has largely remained bereft of the necessary national consideration and remains to this day old, worn out and degenerated. A 6,000 MW coal-powered park had to be put on the backburner due to lack of required infrastructure; Nandipur Power Project could not connect to the national grid hence it had to be shut down for technical and financial reasons; a 1,000 MW planned solar park only has the capacity so far of 100 MW. In all these instances the hype centred on generation, when it should have taken into account problems of poor transmission systems coupled with pitiable planning, mismanagement and pricing issues. Power generation and power transmission is a simultaneous and mutually sustaining process; lag in one area will necessarily hurt the other. With our pronounced oblivion of critically managing the energy crisis, our one-legged race of concentrating only on adding power generation has added to our woes of inflation, unemployment and public anger. Wisdom has finally dawned on the government, which has realised that exclusive slogans of power generation without solving the problem of power transmission simultaneously will not win them the needed votes in the 2018 election. Electricity generation remains to this day a problem that could cause political instability because of a crippled economy. Solving the power crisis cannot exclusively stem from purely political considerations without the inclusion of technical expertise; according to the lead energy specialist for Pakistan at the World Bank, Richard Spencer: “Sharif inherited a power system on the brink of collapse. He revived it, but now faces a tough political decision to improve it.” It is necessary to garner a resolve that aims to move beyond the darkness of today to brighten a tomorrow. The power crisis has affected almost all segments of society and every sector of our economy. Pakistan produces 16,000 MW of electricity and experiences a gulf of 6,000 MW. Improvement in our energy sector will breathe new life into our psychological, economic, social and political potential. *