Degree

Master of Business Administration Executive

Faculty / School

School of Business Studies (SBS)

Year of Award

2026

Advisor/Supervisor

Dr. Rameez Khalid, Associate Professor, Department of Management

Project Type

MBA Executive Research Project

Access Type

Restricted Access

Keywords

CTBCM, KE, DISCOs, Functional Unbundling, Transformation Roadmap

Executive Summary

The transition to the Competitive Trading Bilateral Contract Market (CTBCM) represents a major reform in Pakistan’s power sector, shifting from a centralized single-buyer model to a regulated competitive market where large consumers can procure electricity from multiple suppliers. This transition, targeted for implementation by 2026, requires fundamental structural, operational, and commercial changes for K-Electric (KE), Pakistan’s only privately owned, vertically integrated utility.

This study evaluates KE’s readiness for CTBCM, focusing on its Distribution Business, and develops a structured transformation roadmap to support regulatory compliance, operational stability, and competitiveness. The research adopts a qualitative case study approach, combining regulatory analysis, international benchmarking, and stakeholder insights.

The findings indicate that while the regulatory framework is largely established, KE’s execution readiness remains uneven. Key challenges include incomplete functional unbundling between Distribution and Supply roles, gaps in metering and data governance affecting settlement accuracy, operational inefficiencies due to fragmented processes, and limited commercial capabilities in pricing, contracting, and risk management. Additionally, organizational readiness and CTBCM-related skills are still evolving.

A critical risk identified is the exposure to industrial customer migration. Bulk Power Consumers, contributing around 30 percent of KE’s revenue, will gain supplier choice under CTBCM. Even moderate migration could significantly impact revenue and challenge network cost recovery.

To address these challenges, the study proposes a phased, dependency-driven transformation roadmap. Initial phases focus on foundational capabilities such as settlementgrade metering, centralized billing, data integration, and governance clarity. Subsequent phases introduce commercial capabilities, including customer segmentation, contracting, and pricing mechanisms, followed by long-term optimization and institutionalization.

The study concludes that KE is strategically aligned but operationally evolving. Successful transition will depend on disciplined execution, system integration, and organizational capability development, supported by coordinated regulatory and policy action across the sector.

Pages

x,130

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