Pakistan’s Water and Power Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf has said that an additional 826 MW of electricity will be added to the system by December 2011.
The minister said the current government has already added 1982 MW to the system.
He said that the Diamer-Bhasha dam project will be inaugurated in February, adding 4500 MW of generation to the network.
He said the government is also working on several ‘mega projects’, including Gunji, Dasu and Neelum-Jhelum power projects to greatly increase generation, bringing it in line with national demand.
He said the government is also making efforts to import 750 MW of electricity from Iran, while a power plant gifted by the UAE government will start operating soon.
He said the main reason for the delay in the start of rental power projects was the law and order situation compelling investors to quit. However, after improvement in the conditions, “...many are returning to restart their projects.”