Thar coal railway line to Port Qasim set for Dec 2025 completion

Talks with global lenders are underway to fund project, signaling major push for more stable and cost-effective power grid

By Israr Khan
February 27, 2025
Train carriages laden with coal are pictured at a railway station. — AFP/File
Train carriages laden with coal are pictured at a railway station. — AFP/File 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is ramping up its energy infrastructure with a railways linking Thar’s coal mines to Port Qasim by December 2025, while planning a nearly half-a-billion-dollar, 1,000MW battery storage initiative in the south to harness wind energy and while a stabilize the grid.

Talks with global lenders are underway to fund the project, signaling a major push for a more stable and cost-effective power grid.

“Work on the railways linking the Thar coal mines to Port Qasim is underway and will be completed by December 2025,” Secretary Power Division Fakhar Alam Irfan informed a parliamentary panel on Wednesday. The rail network will be crucial in delivering Thar’s coal to power projects across the country.

The federal and Sindh governments are jointly overseeing the 105km project, which aims to enhance energy security by reducing reliance on expensive fuel imports. He said that the near $500 million project of battery storage in South is under discussion with the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and Islamic Development Bank for financing.

Briefing the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Power, Fakhar Alam said the ministry is seeking Rs79 billion in the next Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) 2025-26 for four major new projects, including a 1,000MW battery storage initiative and three new transmission lines—Ghazi Barotha, North-South, and Karachi to central Punjab.