WAPDA Projects To Add 11.7 MAF Water, 11369 MW Hydel Power By 2029: Outgoing Chairman

Outgoing WAPDA Chairman Lt Gen Muzammil Hussain (Retd) paid farewell visits to the four under-construction signature projects of WAPDA namely Mohmand Dam, Tarbela 5th Extension, Dasu and Diamer Basha Dam

MIRPUR (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th May, 2022 ) : Outgoing WAPDA Chairman Lt Gen Muzammil Hussain (Retd) paid farewell visits to the four under-construction signature projects of WAPDA namely Mohmand Dam, Tarbela 5th Extension, Dasu and Diamer Basha Dam. WAPDA Chairman designate and Member (Finance) Naveed Asghar Chaudhry, who was on his maiden visits to these projects, also accompanied him.

WAPDA projects' management, representatives of the Consultants and the Contractors concerned were also present on the occasion, it was officially stated on Saturday.

Underlining the significance of harnessing water and hydropower resources for development of Pakistan, the outgoing Chairman said that a silent revolution is taking place in Pakistan, as WAPDA's 10 under-construction mega projects are progressing at a good pace, an official statement issued by media wing of the WAPDA said.

"These projects scheduled to be completed from 2022 to 2029, will ensure water, food and energy security of Pakistan with cumulative gross water storage capacity of 11.7 million acre feet (MAF) and installed hydel power generation capacity of 11369 megawatt; sufficient to irrigate 3.5 million acres of land and provide 44.7 billion units of green and cheap electricity on the average every year," it added.

Appreciating the commitment and dedication of the projects' management in carrying these projects forward, he said "Integrity, dignity and competence reign supreme. I am fortunate to have good people around me".

Elaborating the hardships in the way to implementing projects six-seven years ago, he said " We were mindful of the fact that WAPDA must stood up to tackle these challenges.

WAPDA not only completed as many as four long-stranded projects but also had been able to initiate 10 mega projects by removing the bottlenecks".

He expressed the hope that WAPDA teams would make their best efforts to complete these projects as per the timelines.

During his visit to Mohmand Dam, the outgoing Chairman flanked by the WAPDA Chairman designate also inaugurated the newly-constructed office building of the project.

The General Managers/Project Directors concerned briefed the visitors of the progress on the projects.

It is worth mentioning here that Mohmand Dam was being built across River Swat in Tribal District Mohmand of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with gross water storage capacity of 1.2 MAF and power generation capacity of 800 MW. The project will be completed in 2026.

Tarbela 5th Extension Hydropower Project was being constructed on the 5th Tunnel of Tarbela Dam located in District Haripur of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with installed generation capacity of 1530 MW. Electricity generation from the project would start in 2024.

Dasu Hydropower Project Stage-I is being executed across River Indus in District Upper Kohistan of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with installed power generation capacity of 2160 MW. The project will commence power generation in 2026.

Diamer Basha Dam is being constructed across River Indus 40-Kms downstream Chilas Town of Gilgit Baltistan with gross water storage capacity of 8.1 MAF and installed power generation capacity of 4500 MW. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2029.