300MW coal power plant okayed for Gwadar

ISLAMABAD: Federal Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Minister Ahsan Iqbal approved a 300MW coal power project on Tuesday, directing the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Power Division, Gwadar Port Authority and China Overseas Ports Holding Company Ltd to ensure 100pc power consumption for this project to avoid any financial loss to the exchequer.

The minister made these directions while chairing a meeting to review the project. The meeting was attended by the COPHCL chairman, Gwadar Port Authority (GPA) chairman and other stakeholders. The project was conceived under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CEPC) in 2016.

The project aims at improving the reliability of local power supply, which would help gradually solve the problems in current economic development and urban construction in the Gwadar region, which are being restricted by the shortage of power.

Previously, the minister had directed COPHECL to provide the exact electricity demand for the Gwadar Free Zone and share a 10-year plan for electricity consumption by the Gwadar Free Zone Company to establish the exact electricity utilisation of 300 MW coal-fired power project at Gwadar.

During the meeting, the minister also directed the Power Division to address the impediments and meet the completion deadline of January 2025.

The Gwadar Power Plant, New Gwadar International Airport Project, China-Pak Friendship Hospital, China-Pak Technical and Vocational Institute in Gwadar, Gwadar East-Bay Expressway Project, Gwadar Free Zone, and Gwadar Port are the major projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

The minister said that the government was already working on a project to build two transmission lines from Iran that will increase the power supply for electricity.