COMMENT
While the nation remains in mourning over the airliner tragedy of December 7 that killed 47 persons aboard, it is a great loss for Andritz Hydro, the global hydropower company based in Austria, as all the three foreigner victims, the two Austrians and a Chinese, were its expert engineers working on a hydropower project in Chitral. They were the key persons for hydropower project execution, and besides the personal bereavement to their families and friends, it is a great setback to the Group’s human resources. Reportedly, the Austrian Embassy in Islamabad had opened the Book of Condolences.
Andritz Hydro has been actively working in Pakistan since long, even in the recent past when other Western companies would not do business in this country because of security concerns, the company worked even in far-flung northern areas where basic infrastructures and facilities were lacking and weather conditions extreme. In recent years, Andritz Hydro has commissioned Wapda’s hydropower projects; Allai Khwar of 121MW installed capacity and Duber Khwar of 130MW installed capacity, both located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. These power stations, which are connected to the national grid, are operating satisfactorily.
All the three deceased engineers, namely Han Qiang, Harald Kessler and Herwig Eichelbenger, were working at the Wapda’s under-construction Golen Gol hydropower project of 106MW installed capacity located on the Golen Gol River in Chitral District. The company is responsible for the supply, installation, commissioning and testing of the critical Electro-Mechanical Works of the power station. On the directive of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the project implementation is now on fast track, and the first unit of its powerhouse of 35.3MW capacity is scheduled for power generation in June 2017, which was originally targeted for October 2017.
Therefore, since May this year the installation of turbines had picked up speedy progress, and the first turbo-generator was to be completed in time. With the death of the key experts, however, it is feared that the pace of work on the project could significantly suffer. The power demand in Chitral has increased manifold during recent years as a result of socioeconomic development in the region. Currently, one-megawatt Chitral Hydel Complex that was commissioned in 1975 supplies electricity to Chitral city through 11kv transmission line, which is unable to meet the electricity needs of the city.
The powerhouse up-gradation to 5MW capacity is in advanced stage of planning and engineering at Wapda, but its implementation would take some time. It is therefore of great significance to achieve the revised target set for the commercial operations of the Golen Gol project.
The deceased experts are fondly remembered by the engineers, managers and workers of the New Bong Escape Powerhouse at Mirpur (AJ&K), owned and operated by Laraib Energy Ltd, a subsidiary of Hubco. With the dedication and hard-work they rendered to the project at installation and commissioning stage, it could be possible for the first Independent Power Producer (IPP) project of 84MW installed capacity to achieve the milestone of commercial operations date (COD) in March 2013, about two months ahead the schedule. Primarily, it is because of the success of the first IPP that Andritz Hydro received order for the Electro-Mechanical Works of another IPP namely Gulpur Hydropower project of 100MW capacity located in Gulpur, AJ&K, which is currently under execution on fast track.
Incidentally, Andritz Hydro had organised a workshop on small hydropower in Lahore on December 6, just a day before the tragedy occurred. The event, arranged in collaboration with the Punjab Power Development Board (PPDB), was largely attended by hydropower engineers working in the public and private sectors, consultants, engineering industry representatives, and prospective investors in hydropower development, besides the officials of the PPDB and expert delegates from Andritz Hydro. According to Dr Mazhar Hussain of the PPDB, stage is set for take-off of various small hydropower projects on the irrigation canal network that has identified hydropower potential of 600MW. While public sector is mandated to develop ten schemes of over 80MW cumulative capacity, another eleven hydropower projects of total 230MW capacity have been offered to private investors.
Most of these projects, of capacity ranging from 9MW to 44MW, are now in advanced stages of implementation, and issuance of generation license to developers and tariff petition/determination for a few projects is currently pending with National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra).
Ironically, the developers were issued Letter of Interest (LOI) sometime in 2007, under the Punjab Power Generation Policy 2006, still in vogue. The workshop discussed constraints, risks and challenges in developing small hydropower, with the consensus that the government’s inconsistent policies, poor entrepreneurship and absence of indigenous design, engineering and manufacturing capabilities were the factors for slow pace of progress, besides geological, hydrological and financial issues linked with small hydropower development.
Mr Giuseppe Catalfamo of Andritz Hydro gave an impressive presentation on the Group, highlighting its activities and references, in the past and present, of large, medium and small hydropower plants in Pakistan. With the merger of many pioneering companies in hydropower business and their subsequent acquisition by Andritz Hydro over the years, such as GE Hydro, Canadian GE, Escher-Wyss, Dominion Engineering, Sulzer Hydro, Voest-Alpine and VA Tech Hydro etc, the Company is now the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to the Wapda’s Warsak Hydropower, Tarbela Hydropower (except the first four units) and two units of Mangla power station, besides the oldest hydropower stations in operation, Rasul and Renala small hydro.
Andritz Hydro has developed Compact Hydro, a modular design concept for small hydropower, which minimises the number of components and sizes covering all types of turbines with a wide range of applications. Mr Manfred Motz, the Compact Hydro specialist, highlighted technical features of various types of turbines, which require minimal civil works and shorter installation time, and are cost-effective.
It was concluded that Compact Hydro was the best solution for proposed small hydro schemes on canals as flow of water for irrigation needs not to be stopped during construction of the power station. This was followed by a lively Question-Answer session and separate sessions with prospective investors. Here, it is important to mention that Andritz Hydro has successfully introduced the Compact Hydro in Pakistan already. It has supplied and commissioned two units out of total four of Satpara Hydel Power Complex of cumulative installed capacity of over 17MW, in May/June 2013.
The writer is ex-chairman of the State Engineering Corporation
