The most ambitious development programme in
Pakistan's history
From Shamim Ahmed Rizvi,
Islamabad
July 30 - Aug 05 , 2001
The high profile vision 2025 was unfolded at a
seminar arranged by WAPDA and inaugurated by the President Gen. Pervez
Musharraf in Lahore on Monday. The Chairman Water & Power
Development Authority Lt. Gen Zulfiqar Ali Khan highlighted WAPDA
vision which envisages meeting the entire needs of water and power
generation requirements of the country at a total expenditure of 45
billion US dollars.
Inaugurating the seminar on "Water Resources
and hydropower development programme; vision 2025", President
Musharraf, attired in his Military uniform, commended the efforts of
his comrade General Zulfiqar to put the long-ailing WAPDA on the right
path. Gen. Musharraf disclosed that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif
sought Army's help in managing the affairs of troubled WAPDA.
"Accepting the PM's suggestion, I asked Lt. Gen. Zulfiqar Ali
Khan to assume the charge of Chairman WAPDA, though he (Zulfiqar) was
a bit shy.... but he took up the great challenge and proved his mental
by plugging in the leakages and pulled out the corporation for a
turnaround," General Musharraf remarked.
He said that WAPDA was on a right path and marching
towards a great recovery. The Vision 2025, he said, was also a
marvellous achievement under which short-term strategies have been
developed for the good of the country. Elaborating WAPDA Chairman,
said, six of the schemes that form part of Vision 2025 are due to be
launched next month. They include the Gomal Dam in NWFP, Hingol Dam
and Mirani Dam in southern Balochistan, the Greater Thal Canal in
Punjab and the Right Bank Outfall Canal in Sindh. The cost of these
five schemes is estimated at nearly 5 billion dollars. At current
prices, the total cost of the Vision 2025 programme — which also
includes Basha Dam on the Indus River in the Northern Areas, 320
kilometers upstream of Tarbela Dam — is estimated at $45 billion.
Chairman said that these six projects, costing 6.29
billion dollars, would help generate 2817.4 MW power besides creating
water storage facility of 5.04 Million Acre Feet (MAF) which will
bring 1,936,200 areas of land under cultivation in all four provinces
of the country.
He said that the objective of the seminar was to
seek participation of the interested parties including national and
international investors for the fast track and cost effective
implementation of the projects. "The seminar aims to share
details and status of projects, of foreign and local investors,"
he said.
The Chairman said that due to sedimentation,
Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma reservoirs have already lost 4.26 million
MAF capacity and this loss would be 5.94 MAF by year 2010 which was
almost equivalent to the original storage capacity of Mangla Dam.
He lamented that so far existing reservoirs could
store 17.1 MAF water out of total storage potential of 64.4 MAF which
was only 11 per cent of available surface water. "We can
cultivate around 22.5 million acre cultivable land by using the
available water resources," he observed. He added that same was
the case of hydropower generation as only 16 per cent of our total
capacity could be achieved.
General Zulfiqar Ali Khan said that according to a
study, we may face power shortage of 650 MW by the year 2006. However,
by harnessing the potential to generate 40,000 MW, this shortage could
easily be overcome. He said that during the last 20 years, the share
of hydropower in total generation had reduced from 60 per cent to 20
per cent.
The Vision 2025 is to be implemented in three
phases. The federal cabinet approved the Vision 2025 programme in
August last year. Under Phase 1 of the three-phase programme, WAPDA
has been given the go-ahead to undertake detailed engineering and
feasibility studies for Basha Dam and the Greater Thal Canal, as well
as for Kachi Canal in Balochistan, the Chashma Right Bank Canal in
NWFP, the Thal reservoir project in Punjab, and three projects in
Sindh: Riverne Area Development, Thar Canal and Sehwan Barrage. The
total cost of these projects is estimated at $11.71 billion (at the
current exchange rate of 64 rupees to the US dollar).
Priority hydroelectric generation projects in Phase
I include: Jinnah ($162 million), Malankand-III ($80 million), Allai
Khawar ($110 million), Golen Gol ($104 million), New Bong ($110
million) Khan Khawar ($86 million), Duber Khawar ($109 million, and
Pehur High Level ($8 million).
In January this year, the federal government also
approved Phases II and III of the Vision 2025 programme. Hydroelectric
project to be built under Phase II include: raising the height of
Mangla Dam to increase its reservoir storage and power generation
capacity ($850 million), Thal Reservoirs ($58 million), Doyian ($346
million) Neelkum-Jhelum ($1.5 billion), Kohala ($1.4 billion),
Matiltan ($110 million), Gulpure ($150 million), Abbasian ($250
million), Rajdhani ($113 million), and several combined cycle power
generation projects ($2.9 million).
Phase III includes 16 schemes, including dams and
generation projects: Basha ($6 billion), Dasu ($3.1 billion), Patan
($2.97 billion), Thakot ($2.56 billion), Bunji ($2.69 billion), Munda
($1.56 billion), Chakothi ($167 million), Naran ($262 million), Suki
Kinar ($750 million), Patrind ($167 million), Azad Pattan ($266
million) Karot ($252 million), Thar Coal Project ($1.6 billion) Lakhra
Coal Project ($360 million, and several combined cycle power
generation projects ($1 billion).
Vision 2025 is the most ambitious development
programme in Pakistan's history, and its implementation will, of
course, depend on the country being able to find the money to finance
it. Even so, its basis reflects very creditably on both — the
Federal Government.
Among the international lending agencies that have
shown interest in co-financing the Vision 2025 programme is the Asian
Development Bank (ADB). However, it is not yet clear as to what will
be the size of ADB's investment. Before firming up its investment
plans, the ADB is expected to consult other lending agencies and donor
countries that may be interested in providing funding for the
programme. A report prepared by WAPDA and the federal government on
Vision 2025 was circulated amongst ADB's partners earlier this year
and is said to be under consideration by them.
The World Bank is also said to have shown interest
in partly financing the Vision 2025 programme, but its support is said
to be conditional upn counterpart financing by the Pakistan government
and WAPDA. According to the Economic Affairs Division, financing for
the progrmme is also being discussed directly with China, Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and several other friendly countries.
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