Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reform Prof Ahsan Iqbal has said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a key initiative which will help Pakistan in meeting energy shortfall and linking with regional economies, particularly China.
The minister made these remarks while chairing the meeting of steering committee on energy projects under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) on Saturday.
The minister said the Chinese government was keen to pursue the CPEC and has shown trust in government’s policies. However, he said, that “we have to deliver results according to strict timelines and work on full capacity to avail this historic window of opportunity.”
The steering committee meeting reviewed feasibility studies of energy projects under the CPEC, demand and supply framework of ongoing and new projects, integrated plan for generation, transmission and distribution, payment modalities of power purchase agreements, curtailing power losses and integrated coal logistics plan for coal power projects.
The meeting was attended by Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Federal Minister for Water and Power Khwaja Asif, Secretary Planning Hasan Nawaz Tarar, Secretary Water and Power Nargis Sethi and representatives from the ministry of railways and economic affairs division.
Addressing the meeting, Prof Ahsan Iqbal said during his recent visit to China along with the Punjab chief minister, the delegation requested Chinese authorities to prioritise Pakistan’s energy projects.
The Chinese government expressed its full commitment to help Pakistan overcome energy challenge, he added. The minister also shed light on the importance of Gaddani Energy Park which had been dedicated as Pak-China Energy Park, which will be country’s biggest energy projects with 6,600 Megawatt capacity.
Iqbal stressed on integration of work to bring about synergy. He called for an integrated plan for coal logistics for energy projects and also directed the committee to address observations of Chinese authorities.
He said that generation of electricity was not the only issue but transmission and distribution mechanism must also be upgraded to take electricity to consumers as increase in generation would overload the already over-loaded transmission lines.
He urged the committee members to demonstrate highest quality of work to ensure better results. Addressing the meeting, Chief Minister of Punjab Shehbaz Sharif said this economic corridor was a golden opportunity for Pakistan.
He said, “It’s now or never. We have to accept the challenge and pounce on this opportunity. History will never forgive us if we failed to do so.”
He said everyone including politicians, bureaucrats and technocrats must come together for betterment of Pakistan and bring this country out of darkness. He shared with the committee that in the last decade energy mix of Pakistan was tilted towards hydel energy but unfortunately it was shifted to thermal energy which damaged the economy in general and energy sector in particular.
He said: “We have to act and act fast.” He directed the authorities to complete the projects by 2017 positively. Federal Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif informed the committee that the ministry was working on strict timelines and ensuring transparency and timely completion at all costs in projects.
Progress on different energy projects under CPEC such as coal-based power projects at Gaddani, Jetty + Infrastructure at Gaddani, Quaid-e-Azam Solar Power Park, Rail Projects (ML-I) and coal-based power projects at Port Qasim were also discussed.
The meeting of steering committee will be held frequently to monitor the progress of energy projects under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.