To reinforce country’s power transmission system, Economic Affairs Division (EAD) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) have signed a loan and project agreement amounting to $125 million for the second Power Transmission Enhancement investment program (Tranche-1).
Under this new multi tranche financing facility, ADB will provide $810 million, in total over the period of 10 years. Tariq Bajwa, EAD Secretary, signed the Loan Agreement with Mr. Werner E. Liepach, Country Director for ADB.
According to the finance ministry, this investment program will expand and reinforce Pakistan’s power transmission system, enabling it to provide a reliable and quality service capable of meeting increasing customer demand and supporting economic growth. The investment program consists of staged physical investments in transmission system, including the rehabilitation, augmentation, and expansion of transmission lines, substations, and supporting infrastructure. The physical investments will support evacuation of new generation to improve system reliability and quality of supply through reinforcement and improved monitoring and control and will meet increasing consumer demand, finance ministry said.
Finance ministry in a press statement said that the capacity development component would further improve the financial management regulatory relations planning project management, and procurement capacity of the transmission system owner and operator, the National Transmission and dispatch Company Limited (NTDC), and the sector’s newly established commercial operator, the Central Power Purchasing Agency (Guarantee) Limited (CPPA-G). These investments will increase institutional efficiency, cost recovery, competition, transparency and good governance within the power sector.
