Balloki plant completed, to supply 1,223MW power to national grid

LAHORE: Balloki Power Plant has been completed following successful conclusion of all commissioning works and performance-related tests.

Rashid Mahmood, CEO of National Power Parks Management Company (NPPMCL), said on Sunday, “I am proud to announce that the Balloki project is now able to supply up to 1,223 megawatts (MW) of uninterrupted power to the national grid, equivalent electricity needed to supply up to 2.5 million Pakistani homes. This is the second re-gasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) power project developed by NPPMCL, the first being the Haveli Bahadur Shah (HBS) power plant, which entered full-fledged combined cycle commercial operations in May 2018.

Together, the HBS and Balloki plants have already added over 5.5 billion kilowatt hours of power to the national grid while in the commissioning phase and they will continue to deliver efficient, low cost power for up to 30 years, making a meaningful difference in the lives of the people of Pakistan.”

The contract to set up the plant was awarded by NPPMCL to HEI, which is the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the project and responsible for its installation works and commissioning schedule. HEI sub-contracted General Electric (GE) to supply two of its HA gas turbines, some auxiliary equipment and technical advisory services. The plant had earlier realised an impressive milestone by synchronizing an HA unit to the grid just 74 days after it was delivered to the project site, the shortest duration in which GE’s HA technology has achieved this milestone anywhere in the world.

“The successful completion of Balloki power plant underlines the strong collaboration among NPPMCL, HEI and GE in driving the commissioning of the project. People from more than 25 countries came together to work on this project. Together, we brought the world’s best to power Pakistan – local project management with Chinese engineering expertise and power generation technologies that were developed by advanced research and development teams based in North America and Europe,” said Li Chao, Chief Operation Officer of HEI and General Director of 1st Power Division of HEI.

“GE is committed to bringing advanced technologies to Pakistan that assure the highest levels of productivity and efficiency,” said Sarim Sheikh, President & CEO of GE Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan.

“For over half a century now, GE has led the transformation of the power sector in Pakistan and the successful start of commercial operations at Bhikki, Haveli Bahadur Shah and now Balloki, bringing a total of 3,600 MW to the national grid, is another example of our focus on working with our customers to deliver the world’s leading energy solutions to the country,” he said.