On 7th July 2020, Pakistan and Gezhouba Group Company Limited of China signed an Engineer Procurement and Contract (EPC) agreement for the 700 MW Azad Pattan Hydel Power Project on Jhelum River in the Sudhnoti District of Pakistan occupied Kashmir(PoK).
Imran Khan, Prime Minister of Pakistan witnessed the signing in a ceremony in Islamabad.
- This 1.5 billion USD project is a 2nd power project under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor(CPEC).
- The first project was signed on 23rd June 2020, for the 1100 MW Kohala project worth 2.3Billion USD, on the Jhelum river near Muzaffarabad.
Azad Pattan Hydel Power Project:
i.Azad Pattan Hydel Power Project is a run on the river scheme with a reservoir near the Muslimabad village located 7km upstream from the Azad Pattan bridge.
ii.The construction of the project was proposed in 2002, which will take 69 months for completion.
iii.The project developed on the BOOT(Build, Own, Operate, transfer) model will be commissioned by 2024 and transferred to the Pakistan Government after 30 years.
iv.The government of Pakistan through the Private Power Infrastructure Board, a single window facilitator created by the Pakistan government to promote private investment in power projects, cleared the project in June 2016.
v.Power Universal Co. Ltd., of China Gezhouba Group, Chinese state owned multinational corporation, was nominated as the sponsor and initial shareholders by the Private Power infrastructure board.
CPEC:
The CPEC is a part of the One Belt One Road(OBOR), which is aimed to develop and improve the infrastructure with Pakistan for better trade with China.
Key Points:
i.The Azad Pattan Project is one of the five hydropower schemes on the Jhelum River.
ii.The Mahl, Kohala and Chakothi projects are located upstream from the Azad Pattan bridge and the Karot project is located downstream from the Azad Pattan.
iii.The Kohala, Azad Pattan and Karot are developed under the framework of CPEC.
iv.India protested the construction of dams and other infrastructure in the region of PoK and Gilgit Baltistan, which are claimed as a part of Jammu and Kashmir by India.
About Pakistan:
Prime Minister– Imran Ahmad Khan Niazi
President– Dr. Arif Alvi
Capital– Islamabad
Currency– Pakistani Rupee
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