The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s mosque solarization project has come under scrutiny over alleged irregularities in bidding, project costs, and contract management.
According to documents, winning bids for all seven packages covering the solarization of 2,490 mosques during the PTI government exceeded official estimates by 7.98% to 10.99%, putting an additional financial burden of more than Rs. 500 million on the public exchequer.
The documents also show that two companies initially disqualified during prequalification were allowed to rejoin the tender process after filing complaints. Questions have also been raised over the estimated cost per solar unit, which reportedly differed by around Rs. 156,000 from the cost of a previous project executed by the National Radio and Telecommunication Corporation (NRTC).
Another concern involves delays in the NRTC’s earlier contract. The documents cite a potential penalty of around Rs. 586 million for the delays. However, instead of imposing the penalty, the organization was awarded another contract to solarize 500 mosques, estimated to cost Rs. 419.1 million.
The allegations have raised questions about procurement decisions, cost calculations, and the handling of contractual obligations.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organization (PEDO), however, has defended the project, saying all legal requirements and transparency standards were followed. It said bids were evaluated under established rules and no firm received illegal benefits.
PEDO attributed delays to funding constraints and administrative issues. The province has set an overall target of solarizing 7,500 mosques.
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