The 1,000MW project worth $4bn may take seven years to complete. PHOTO: FILE
Spadework has been started on the 1,000 MW nuclear power plant being set up near Hawkes Bay with Chinese assistance, sources said. The plant worth $4 billion will take seven years to start generating power.
First payment from the $1 billion allocated in the current budget has been released by the federal government to the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission to initiate development work on the project.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will inaugurate the project on a later date as part of Karachi Coastal Power Project that involves setting up two nuclear reactors having a production capacity of 1,000MW each.
The sources said that the centre has also earmarked funds for setting up a nuclear power plant in Punjab with Chinese assistance.
Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission has set a target of establishing nuclear power plants capable of producing 8,800 MW of electricity by the year 2030, most likely with Chinese assistance, the sources said.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 24th, 2013.
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havent heard of any@Ahmed: havnt heard of any nuclear accidents in China but the Fukishima disaster makes me uneasy about sonami
@Dr.A.K.Tewari: Failed doctor your comments display your sick hatred for Pakistan. Gwadar is very much a part of Pakistan. Stop posting comments which display your own ignorance. Looks like Indian ditched it's daddy Russia for USA to reach new levels of ignorance which will lead to it's downfall.
Its chinese technology and so will be a disaster, if reactor implementation on shore of karachi.If any problem happens, then people have to get away from the financial city of pakistan and will become a no mans land.
@unbelievable: I can bet this is a planted story! lol! Just today there was a news that the govt will use media to negate all tough decisions and this is being done aptly!!!!
Lets replace the 150,783,402,897MW Thar coal gave us under the PPP with this new utopian fantasy of "Chinese Nuclear Power" for the next 5 years...
So did ET reporter go out and confirm that "spade work" started - or is this another planted story by "sources" to give impression that govt is actually doing something?
@Last Word: Are you talking about India or Pakistan?
why 7 years? that is way too long. if it takes that long, they need to start work on more than 2 nuclear plants right now
'The plant worth 4 billion dollars will take seven years to start generating power.' Clever Chinese, they know that the country wont be in existence by that time.
build kala bagh dam
If we can build nuclear power plants, why are we begging Americans for Civilian Nuclear Power agreement? Confusion Confusion Confusion!!!!
More nuclear power is required to cope up with the load shedding..good start hopefully it will be completed.