Regional cooperation: PM calls for stronger energy ties with C Asia

Sets July 31 deadline for acquisition of land for Diamer-Bhasha Dam

ISLAMABAD/ BISHKEK:

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif wrapped up a visit to the Central Asian region on Friday, pushing to expand energy ties with Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan to tackle his country’s chronic power shortages.

In a meeting with his Kyrgyz counterpart, Temir Sariyev, on Thursday, he discussed an electricity project that would see Pakistan import up to 1,000MW from mountainous Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

The 1,200km power line, which would also supply 300MW to Afghanistan, “would ease the electro-energy deficit” of Pakistan, Premier Nawaz said.

He flew to Bishkek from the Turkmen capital Ashgabat, where he spoke with Turkmenistan’s leader Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov on Wednesday. After the talks, PM Nawaz said he hoped to “intensify work on the TAPI project that would bring advantages to the entire region.”

The ambitious pipeline project TAPI valued at up to $10 billion that would pump Turkmen gas to the South Asian country and India, also via Afghanistan.

Cabinet meeting on energy

Later chairing the 14th meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Energy at the PM House on Friday, Premier Nawaz set a July 31 deadline for acquiring land for Diamer-Bhasha dam and starting the project.

To hold an inquiry into suspected irregularities committed in the purchase of land for the dam, he also ordered the constitution of a parliamentary committee.

The head of the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) Zafar Mahmood updated the meeting on matters related to Diamer-Bhasha hydel power generation project.

The prime minister asked the Wapda chairman to present full project proposal with timelines in the next meeting. He directed that work should be started on this power project as soon as possible.

The meeting, which lasted for more than three hours, was given a detailed presentation on load management and recoveries by Secretary Water and Power Younus Dagha.

The meeting was informed that this year average load-shedding in urban and rural areas has been at six and eight hours respectively – with the exception of those areas where recoveries are too less. On industrial feeders average power outages has been four hours.

PM Nawaz said tangible steps should be taken to control power theft while speeding up recoveries.  He directed the concerned ministries to look into the possibility of increased supply of gas to Guddu Power Plants that would add more than 700MW of electricity by October 2015.

The meeting was also informed about installation of subsidised tubewells in Balochistan. The secretary water and power also briefed the meeting on access to solar power in rural Balochistan.

Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said LNG-based power plants would cost even less than furnace oil. The prime minister gave approval of converting power plants running on diesel and furnace oil to LNG.

Ishaq Dar, Khawaja Asif, Shahbaz Sharif, Sartaj Aziz along with other ministers and senior officials were present at the meeting.


Published in The Express Tribune, May 23^rd, 2015.