Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that Pakistan urgently needs to utilise the natural resources which is among the top most priorities of the government.
The prime minister said this while chairing a meeting on Thar coal project at PM House on Wednesday.
He said the Thar coal project would usher in a new era of energy security for the country and prosperity for the people of Pakistan. It was heartening to know that this project was being carried out as public–private partnership project between the government of Sindh and M/s ENGRO Corporation, said the PM. “Interest of private sector to enter into partnership with the government showed the confidence of the private sector in government policies,” said the PM.
Sharif said the government considered Thar coal development as a flagship project and as a means to energy security for the country. The government of Pakistan appreciated the efforts of government of Sind and its partners in making Thar mining and power project a success and assured the federal government’s support in resolving the issues like early provision of transmission line and ancillary matters.
Earlier, during the briefing, the prime minister was apprised that Pakistan’s coal resource potential was estimated to be around 186 billion tons out of which 175 billion tons were found in Thar alone; one of the largest Lignite deposit in the world. The project aims at developing a coalmine in Thar with the production capacity of 6.5 million ton per year and construct a 660 MW power plant in the first Phase (by 2017) while in the second phase another 660 MW power plant would be in place by 2019. Total cost of the project including mining and power generation is USD 1.6 billion and it will be completed in 3.5 years. It was also disclosed that the price of the electricity will reduce with the passage of time.
He was informed that Thar has been divided into 12 blocks, out of which four blocks have been awarded to different investors. The govt of Sindh and M/s ENGRO are investing in Block-II which will produce 3,960 MW power and it is only 1pc of the total capacity of Thar coal mines. Thar coal resources have an estimated potential of generating more than 100,000 MW of electricity over a period of 300 years; thus, providing an opportunity for large scale mining and power generation over a long period of time. Surveys by different national and international agencies have shown that Thar coal is suitable for power generation. The PM was told that this project was technically and commercially more viable that any other project.
The PM directed secretary water and power to meet with the representatives of govt of Sind and M/s ENGRO for resolving any problem facing by them.
