by Kaswar Klasra
ISLAMABAD, Jul 8. Pakistan set a national record for power production transmission on Thursday, July 7, 2021, thanks to power plants installed under CPEC which enabled the country to produce sufficient electricity to meet higher demand.
“Highest demand & supply of power in the history of Pakistan achieved today at 24,284 MW. It reflects not just higher demand & generation but also increased transmission capacity. In contrast, the highest generation & transmission achieved before PTI govt was in July 2018 at 20,811 MW,” Hammad Azhar, federal Minister for Energy said on Thursday.
Officials of Pakistan’s Ministry of Power and Energy said the country reached a milestone as power plants installed under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), an important pilot project of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), helped Pakistan overcome the energy crisis and paved the way for the country’s economic prosperity, Pakistani officials said.
Pakistan has been facing an energy crisis for decades. Hour-long power load-shedding in urban areas used to be the norm. While in the countrysides, the situation was even worse.
After the launch of CPEC in 2015, power projects were installed across Pakistan which steered the country to meet power demand.
“The power plants built under CPEC hold immense importance” for the country as they have largely solved the serious electricity shortage in Pakistan, bringing advanced technology and creating job opportunities,” the Minister for Energy said last week.
China is also helping Pakistan improve its power distribution system.
Currently, the 660kv Matiari-Lahore high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission project under CPEC is set to boom the power distribution system.
“HVDC project is a boon for the country’s power sector because it will save energy consumption and transmit cheap electricity from CPEC’s southern power plants to the northern load centers of the country,” Hammad told journalists last week.
“It will help Pakistan address energy shortage and inflated electricity price,” he added.
CPEC’s southern power plants and the transmission line project, which officially started high-power transmission last Friday and is expected to be put into commercial operation later this year, will ensure supply availability, stability, and security, supporting the industrialization process in the country, the Minister said.
Officials of Pakistan’s Ministry of Energy made it loud and clear that the power plants installed under CPEC are giving Pakistan electricity at the cheapest prices and the HVDC line will save a substantial amount of electricity from getting wasted.
