GADANI: China has agreed to set up four coal-fired power plants at Gadani Power Corridor in Balochistan, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Thursday.
During his visit to the site of corridor, being named Gadani Power Park, the prime minister said the government of Pakistan would establish the first power plant at the park to attract local and foreign investors.
The park envisages establishment of eight coal-fired power plants with an aggregate capacity of 5,200MW, but the prime minister said he wanted this capacity to be enhanced to 6,600MW through 10 power plants.
He also ordered early implementation of different phases of the project, saying that the country could not afford to lose any time in view of the grave energy crisis.
The prime minister said the project would cost billions of dollars and would create economic and employment opportunities for the backward and far-flung region of Balochistan and Sindh.
"We will have to plan for the next 20 to 25 years to meet demands of 50,000MW of electricity. For this purpose, we will need four or five power parks like the one being established in Gadani," he said.
Nawaz said that a proposal was being considered for establishment of an LNG terminal at the power park.
The prime minister said the country produced 16,170MW of electricity on Wednesday which was "highest in the history of the country". However, he added, the demand has also increased and the gap remains at about 3,000 megawatts.
He also asked the Sindh chief minister to expedite work on utilisation of Thar Coal. He said that both mining and setting up of coal-fired plants should be undertaken simultaneously so that no time is wasted.
Nawaz said the proposed six-lane Lahore-Karachi motorway project would also help accelerate the pace of economic development in different areas of the country. Earlier talking to reporters during his visit to Mazar-e-Quaid in Karachi, the prime minister said the PML-N government respects mandate of all parties in order to put the country on path to progress and prosperity through collective efforts. The Sindh governor and chief minister accompanied the prime minister during the visit.
Nawaz said the country was facing several challenges such as terrorism and extremism "but it is encouraging that we are moving forward in a civilised manner".
Replying to a question, he said the government was not oblivious of security and law and order challenges in the country, including the situation in Karachi.
The prime minister said federal and provincial governments have already started discussions on formulating a strategy that would envisage establishment of a counterterrorism force and better policing to fight crimes.
To a question, the prime minister said Pakistan wanted good relations with India and was looking forward to promote business and trade the neighbouring country. However, he said every effort would be made to resolve all outstanding issues, including the longstanding Kashmir dispute.
Source: http://tinyurl.com/mv68gps
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment