PESHAWAR:( The COW News Digital)-The Pakistan Locomotive Factory Risalpur — the country’s largest engine manufacturing plant and a strategic asset of Pakistan Railways — is facing a severe financial crisis due to lack of federal government attention.
Rising expenses have pushed the factory’s deficit to Rs328 million over the past three years.
According to details submitted by the Ministry of Railways in the Senate, the factory was established in 1993 with the cooperation of Japan and was designed to produce 25 railway engines annually.
Since its inception, it has manufactured 102 diesel and electric engines and rehabilitated 26 old engines.Despite being fully operational, the factory has consistently incurred losses, with expenditures exceeding income over the last three fiscal years.
In 2022-23, the factory’s expenditures stood at Rs410 million against an income of Rs310 million.
In 2023-24, expenses rose to Rs472 million while income reached Rs329 million.
In 2024-25, costs further increased to Rs490 million, while income improved to Rs406 million, but the deficit persisted.
The report said that salaries and allowances was largest share of expenditures which reached Rs381 million in the current fiscal year.Other significant expenses included electricity, gas, and machinery maintenance. The factory’s income sources included engine and bogie repairs, diesel spare parts, and coach manufacturing.
This year alone, wagon production generated more than Rs202 million in revenue.
According to the report, outdated machinery, delays in equipment procurement, hurdles in fund disbursement, limited availability of local suppliers, and shortage of skilled staff were some of the key challenges facing the Risalpur factory.
Efforts to contact the factory’s managing director for comment on its current financial situation remained unsuccessful despite repeated attempts.
