ISLAMABAD: Seven hydropower projects including Diamar-Bhasha Dam will be completed during the next five years, the Ministry of Water and Power told a sub-committee of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Water and Power on Tuesday.
“The seven hydropower projects include Diamar-Bhasha Dam, fourth extension of Tarbela Dam, Kurram Tangi Dam, Munda Dam, installation of power generation unit at Dasu, power generation system at Keyal Khwar and CRBC project,” an official of the ministry at the meeting said.
Giving a break up of the cost and generation capacity of the projects, the official said Diamar-Bhasha dam would generate 4,500 megawatts (MW) of electricity at a cost of $11178 million, Tarbela extension 960MW with a cost of $700 million, Kurram Tangi 84MW with a cost of $700 million, Munda Dam 740MW with a cost of $1,401 million, Dasu power generation 4,320 MW at a cost of $7,805 million and Keyal Khwar will generate 122MW of electricity at a cost of $235 million.
He said he did not have the exact figures of CRBC power generation capacity at the moment but it would cost around $718 million. According to the official, the study for the Tarbela extension project had started and its design would be completed by 2011.
He said to enhance the capacity of the existing units old machinery would be repaired and cabled replaced. The official said advertisement with regards to hiring consultants and contractors for Kurram Tungi Dam had been placed, adding that the dam would make a considerable part of the barren land cultivable.
On Dasu project, the official said the World Bank had agreed to finance the project in phases because it was a huge project and could not be financed in one go.
He added that the government also had plans to construct eight small dams in each province. Initially, the government was planning to build at least one dam in each province with Chinese assistance.
When ANP Senator Zahid Khan, who is a member of the committee, asked why was the Munda Dam, originally planned in 2002, being unnecessarily delayed? The official said the matter was sub judice as a person whose land had been acquired for the dam, had gone to the court and gotten stay orders.
The chief engineer of the Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO) told the committee the company had remarkably improved its recovery in Dir region.
He said at present the recovery in Dir was 98 percent, adding that losses caused by theft, kunda and lines had been curtailed in the PESCO region, adding however that PESCO had been facing difficulty in Bannu, Lakki Marwat, DI Khan districts.
Hailing the improvement, Senator Zahid Khan said it was a big achievement. “The improvement in the areas paralysed by militancy is a great achievement,” he said.
