The Punjab government signed agreements with two companies, from Austria and Germany, on solar and hydel projects in Cholistan. Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif said the German company AEG is executing 400 MW and 50 MW solar energy projects in Cholistan and investing Rs 100 billion in these projects, adding that this is a fabulous gift from the PML-N government to the people of Pakistan and Punjab.
He said the 50 MW project will start generating electricity in June, 2013 whereas the 400 MW project will also be completed within a year. He said a sovereign guarantee will be sought from the federal government for these projects. The CM said the Punjab government has signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with German company Energiequelle and Austrian company Andritz Hydro for cooperation in the energy sector.
Talking to media personnel on the occasion of signing ceremony of two MoUs with energy companies from Germany and Austria at Model Town, Sharif said vast opportunities of generating energy through coal, hydel and solar means existed in Pakistan and the Punjab government welcomes the investment by the German and Austrian companies in this sector. He said the Punjab government is serious in executing energy projects in a short span of time. However, it is lamentable that NEPRA had not yet fixed the per unit electricity rate for these energy projects, he said. Sharif said he had raised his voice a number of times in this regard but no attention was paid to it. He said an agreement had been made with AEG for producing electricity at 18 cent per unit. He disclosed that the federal government was interested in agreeing at 22 cent per unit but now it has to give a sovereign guarantee at the rate of 18 cent. Sharif said he will lay the foundation stone of this project in Cholistan this month.
Punjab energy secretary on behalf of the Punjab government and Helmut Fugemann, Director Sales on behalf of German Company Energiequelle signed the MoU whereas Punjab energy secretary and representative of Austrian company Andritz Hydro signed the other MoU. Special Assistant Zaeem Hussain Qadri, Senator Pervaiz Rashid, Begum Zakia Shahnawaz, MNA Pervaiz Malik and other officials were present on the occasion. Under the agreement, the German company will install projects with a 300 MW solar capacity whereas the Austrian company will cooperate in hydel power projects.