By Minahil Makhdoom
ISLAMABAD: The government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), and Chinese Three Gorges Company on Friday signed agreements related to 1124 megawatt Kohala Hydel Power Project- Implementation and Water Usage under China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The project would attract a foreign investment of $2.4 billion under the umbrella of CPEC. This was announced by CPEC Authority, Chairman, Lieutenant General (R) Asim Saleem Bajwa, on his Twitter handle.
“Signing ceremony for 1124 MW Kohala Hydel Power Project- Implementation and Water Usage Agreements held between AJK Government and China Three Gorges Company,” the Chairman CPEC Authority tweeted. Federal Minister of Energy Hammad Azhar, AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider and others officials were present on the occasion.
The Kohala Hydropower Project is a proposed run-of-the-river, high head project will be located near Kohala, in Azad Kashmir.
The agreement for the project was finalised in 2020 and later it was formally signed in a ceremony attended by the Pakistani prime minister, and Chinese ambassador.
China Three Gorges Corporation (CTGC), the state-owned hydropower developer, had won the right to develop a hydroelectric dam in Pakistan on January 7, 2015. It will be Chinese company’s largest investment in Pakistan.
Earlier on 09 April 2021, Ambassador Moin ul Haque paid a visit to the Three Gorges Dam in Yichang. During the visit, the administration of Three Gorges Dam briefed about its role in water-management, flood control and energy generation in China.
Later on, Ambassador had a meeting with Mr. Zhang Dingming, Executive Vice President of China Three Gorges Corporation (CTGC). Mr. Zheng said that during COVID-19 pandemic, the CTGC sent a medical team to Pakistan for solidarity with Pakistan in May 2020. This medical team provided medical services not only to the Chinese officials working on Karrot Hydropower Project, but also Pakistani staff and local community there. He expressed his satisfaction on the government’s support and vowed to complete the Project on time despite COVID-19 pandemic.
The Ambassador thanked the CTGC’s generous support to Pakistan during COVID-19 pandemic and greatly appreciated the professionalism and commitment of the engineers and workers of the CTGC working on the Karrot Hydropower Project.
