Coal deposits of 3b tons found in Thar

Sindh minister says discovery will help address energy issues, benefit economy

KARACHI:

In a major development, the government of Sindh on Monday discovered 3 billion tons of coal deposits in the Thar region.

In an announcement, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah congratulated the nation over the discovery of coal reserves in Tharparkar and said that it was the second biggest success of the provincial government.

“Thar coal field block-I has up to 3 billion tons of deposits that are equivalent to 5 billion barrels of crude oil,” he said.

“After digging 145 metres in block-I this morning, the coal was discovered. It is the second such major achievement of the Sindh government.”

He pointed out that an earlier slogan claiming that Thar would change the fortunes of Pakistan was becoming a reality.

The discovery was made by a Chinese firm and the chief minister lauded the company for its work.

The Thar Coal Block-I was created under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.

Sindh Energy Minister Imtiaz Ahmed Sheikh also cherished the development and lauded the massive discovery of coal in Thar block-I.

“Discovery of coal deposits in Thar is the beginning of a golden era,” he remarked.

In the first phase, the annual production of coal would be 9 billion tons, he revealed, adding that the development would address energy issues in the area and the country, and give a benefit of billions of dollars to the national exchequer.

Late last year, the National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) shared plans to procure disc insulator and hardware string costing €10.8 million for the 500-kilovolt SECL (Thar block-I) to Matiari double-circuit, transmission line for the supply of power from the 1,320-megawatt SECL Coal Power Plant.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 1^st, 2022.

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