ISLAMABAD: The government has confirmed of successful initiation of commercial operations of a 1,320MW coal-fired power plant worth $2 billion which had successfully undergone commissioning tests as per the agreed procedure.
Engineers have certified the successful commissioning of the complex, said a notification issued by the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA), which is a government-owned subsidiary responsible for procuring power from plants and further selling them to distribution companies. This project had been set up by the China Power Hub Generation Company (CPHGC) under the China-Pakistan Econo¬mic Corridor (CPEC) project on Sunday.
SGS had also been issued a certificate of initial tested capacity that came out at 1,249MW. The CPPA said the power producer had called for declaring its commercial operation date (COD) from Aug 17, 2019. The National Power Control Centre (NPCC) was also directed to issue dispatch instructions to the CPHGC keeping in view the system requirements.
The CPHGC is a joint venture between the Hub Power Company (HUBCO) and China Power International Holding (CPIH)
The company has developed the plant in record time, as per the schedule and within the projected cost. It is set to add 9 billion units (kWh) of electricity to the national grid every year, accommodating the electricity needs of four million households in the country.
This was confirmed by HUBCO CEO Khalid Mansoor, who said they have fulfilled their promise of providing Pakistan with affordable energy.
The Pakistani principal of the project HUBCO currently produces over 2,920MW through its four plants spread over Balochistan, Punjab and Azad Kashmir. It is the only power producer in Pakistan with four projects listed in the CPEC, out of which Thar Energy Limited, Thalnova Power Thar (Pvt) Ltd and Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company at Thar Block II are under construction.
With the completion of the latest project, the power generation capacity of the company has increased to over 3,580MW.
1,320MW coal-fired power plant to start commercial operations
