Diamer-Bhasha, Kalabagh: LCCI suggests listing dams on stock market

Officials say shares should be floated in domestic, international markets

LAHORE: The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Wednesday suggested the Ministry of Finance to list the Diamer-Bhasha and Kalabagh dams in domestic and international stock markets to generate funds for the mega projects.

In a statement, LCCI President Abdul Basit and Vice President Muhammad Nasir Hameed Khan said that the country needs over $30 billion to construct the Diamer-Bhasha and Kalabagh dams and make them operational for power generation. International donor agencies and financial institutions are giving different excuses and are reluctant to fund therefore, the government would have to manage from its own resources.

Elaborating the point, the LCCI office-bearers said that around $14 billion would be required only for the construction of Diamer-Bhasha dam while other expenses worth billions would also be incurred.

“Bhasha and Kalabagh dams will collectively produce 8,000MW of electricity through environmentally clean hydropower generation, will store 15 million acre feet of water that would be used for irrigation and drinking and would control flood damage by the River Indus downstream during high floods and extend the life of Tarbela dam,” the LCCI office-bearers added.

They said that by launching shares of Diamer-Bhasha and Kalabagh dams in the domestic and international stock markets, the government could earn billions of dollars as these are one of the most attractive projects for investors.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 15^th, 2016.

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