PESHAWAR: Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation (PEDO) has said that so far several power generation projects have been completed which are generating a revenue of Rs32 billion for the province.
PEDO has so far successfully completed at least six major power projects – 36.6 megawatts Daral Khwar power project in Swat, 18MW Pehur power project in Swabi, 4 MW Machai power project in Mardan, 81MW Malakand-three project,17MW Ranulia, and 5 MW Reshon power project in Chitral which was washed away in recent floods.
The PEDO officials said an agreement has been signed to supply 18MW of electricity to industry from the Pehure project, from which is earning Rs 254.58 million for annually. PEDO has also completed 25.9MW of new solarisation projects, which will generate annual savings of Rs 423.15 million.
In 1986, Small Hydro Development Organization (SHDO) was set-up for small power plants in the province, which was later given the status of an autonomous body in 1993. In 2013, the provincial government renamed it as Pakhtunkhwa Hydro Development Organisation and it was again remained as Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation which is working on power generation projects in KP.
PEDO is currently working on Jabori Hydro power Project which was expected to be completed in October 2022 however, it could not be completed due to various issues with WAPDA. PEDO is also working on 11.8 MW Karora project in Shangla, 40.8 MW Koto projecting Dir, 84 megawatt Mittalan project in Swat, 69MW Lavi project in Chitral, 10.5MW Chapri Charkhel project in Kalam and 6.5MW Barando project in Torghar underway, which are expected to produce 232.8MW electricity and which will generate Rs10 billion of annual revenue.
Similarly, PEDO has approved the construction of two major power projects with the cooperation of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB). The 300MW power project in Balakot will be started with the financial support of the ADB, for which a consultant and firm have been hired, while the 88MW Gabral project in Kalam will be started with the support of World Bank for which PEDO has hired the services of a consultant.
Briefing the media on ongoing projects, Secretary Energy and Power, Nisar Ahmad Khan stated that several projects have entered the final stages of completion. After completion, Khan said, these projects are expected to generate over Rs10bn annually for the province. He said that the current security situation, closure of Letters of Credit (LCs), increase in taxes on machinery import for hydropower and solar energy projects, are matter of concern as it hamper the timely completion of these projects.
Chief Executive PEDO Engineer Naeem Khan said that work is underway on 42 energy projects of transmission line including hydro and solar power. Engineer Khan said that PEDO has successfully completed several small hydropower projects so far, which is generating a total of 172 megawatts of electricity. The official said that most of ongoing projects are in the final stages of completion.
Similarly, Engineer Khan said, work is underway on solarisation of 4,400 mosques, 8,000 schools, 187 Basic health Units across the province. He added that solar energy projects are saving million of rupees annually in term of electricity bills.
In the second phase, Naeem Khan said, 291 mini micro-hydro stations are also being constructed in areas deprived of electricity, from which a total of 41MW of electricity will be generated. Khan informed that a number of power projects have also been successfully completed in merged tribal districts of the province, which has improved the power transmission system to a great extent.
