1,320MW coal-fired power project under CPEC becomes operational

ISLAMABAD: The China Power Hub Generation Company’s (CPHGC) 1,320MW coal-fired power project in Balochistan under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has declared Commercial Operations Date (COD) and is now commercially operational.

The CPHGC is a joint venture between The Hub Power Company Ltd. (HUBCO) and China Power International Holding, announced this COD of its 1,320MW imported coal power plant and integrated jetty with coal transshipment capacity of 4.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).

Developed in record time, as per schedule and within projected costs, the CPHGC project is a part of the early harvest energy projects under CPEC framework, making it truly a project of national and strategic significance. The plant will add 9 billion kWh of electricity to the national grid every year, meeting electricity needs of four million households in the country. The project’s two units achieved synchronisation with the National Grid on December 28, 2018 and May 28, 2019, respectively, while the Integrated Coal Jetty became operational in December 2018 with arrival of the first shipment of coal.

“The successful completion of CPHGC project has fortified the dream of energy independence of Pakistan. Since the synchronisation earlier in May, we conducted extensive testing of the systems to make sure we deliver quality while keeping HSE [health, safety & Environment] as our top-priority. I am glad that this Pak-China synergy has resulted in engineering excellence and has fulfilled our promise of providing Pakistan with affordable and ample energy” said Khalid Mansoor, CEO HUBCO.

It is important to note that the project has also delivered on various social commitments for improving the lives of the local community of Hub and Lasbella. Together with its partners, CPHGC has set up a school in Gadani, a floating jetty for fishermen in Abbas Village and has conducted various training and development programmes for the local youth of Balochistan.

The Pakistani principal of the project, the Hub Power Company Limited, currently produces over 2,920MW through its four plants spread over Balochistan, Punjab and Azad Jammu & Kashmir. HUBCO is the only power producer in Pakistan with four projects listed in the CPEC out of which three are under-construction namely Thar Energy Limited (TEL) and Thalnova Power Thar (Pvt.) Ltd. and Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC) at Thar Block II and after the completion of these projects, the power generation capacity of the company will enhance to over 3,580MW.