LAHORE: K-Electric will invest Rs 440 billion till 2023 out of which the company has invested Rs 229 billion up till now, said Chief Distribution Officer K- Electric Amer Zia and Project Head 900 MW Bin Qasim Power Station (BQPS III) Tahir Ali Khan while giving a briefing to the delegation of Lahore Economic Journalists Association during their recent visit to K-Electric Head Office and site of BQPS III. Director Communication K-Electric Imran Rana was also present on the occasion.
They also said that 900 MW power plant of K-Electric is near completion. It is expected that Bin Qasim Power Station (BQPS III) will start its power generation in January 2022 adding that this will improve power supply in summer as well as boost economic activity in the city.
“Once BQPS-III goes completely online, KE will realize annual savings of PKR 7 billion which will benefit the national exchequer as well as contribute around PKR 300 billion to Pakistan’s GDP”, they said.
They also said that with the efforts of the company and with the support of civil society they had abolished power theft. There were no more “Kundas” (illegal connections) in Karachi.
Amer Zia said that eighty percent area that came under K- Electric is load-shedding free.
He said when he took charge there were six lac “Kundas” (illegal connections) but now there were only one lac “Kundas” (illegal connection).
He said that this is the reason we will reduce line losses from 40 percent to 15 percent till June 2022. He further said instead of penalizing the people involved in power theft they are focusing on running an awareness campaign in the people regarding power theft.
Director Communication K-Electric Imran Rana while giving briefing the media said that the company is continuously investing in improving the infrastructure. He apprised the media about the progress on the 900 MW Bin Qasim Power Station (BQPS III) being set up an estimated cost of USD 650 million. He also said that the agreement for the provision of RLNG had been signed.
Project Head Bin Qasim Power Station (BQPS III) Tahir Ali Khan said that it is a state-of-the-art power plant which is getting completed in a record time. The tremendous progress made by K-Electric to bring this project online in such a short span of time is highly commendable. With 59 percent efficiency and equipped with the latest technology, such kinds of plants are predominantly installed in developed countries only. It will not only help meet the future power demand of the city but will also reduce our reliance on expensive fuels since it is an RLNG-based power plant.
He said that upon completion (as first unit of 450 MW to be energized) the power plant will be among the top five most efficient plants in the country. This upcoming plant is based on RLNG which is an environmentally friendly fuel. In case of non-availability of RLNG, the plant is capable to use Diesel as an alternate fuel.
Tahir said that the combined cycle project consists of 2 Siemens Gas Turbines (SGT5-4000F) and Steam Turbines which have been selected for their outstanding performance and excellent efficiency worldwide. Its easy maintenance results in shorter outages, ensuring the gas turbine achieves highest availability.
As a result, Tahir said BQPS-III will help reduce import costs for the government, produce affordable power for consumers, and leave a much smaller carbon footprint as compared to furnace oil power plants which in turn have a minimal impact on the environment.
While giving the details, Tahir said that in August 2021, K-Electric entered into a Gas Supply Agreement (GSA) with Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) for the provision of 150 mmcfd RLNG to KE’s Bin Qasim Complex in the presence of Minister of Energy Hammad Azhar and other senior government officials.
He also said that to bring this project online as quickly as possible, over four million man-hours have been employed in bringing the project to meet Karachi’s growing power demand. With the capacity to power up to 180,000 households, KE’s mission to make 93 percent of Karachi load-shed free by 2023 will come closer to realization due to BQPS-III.
He further said to ensure a balanced investment in technology and ecology, we have also made investments in the local environment, with over 100,000 mangroves planted to date which will be able to store 40,000 tons of carbon.
These mangrove plants provide protection against coastal flooding and promote biodiversity through its function of being a nursery and feeding ground for many animals. Fishing communities in this area also rely on the mangroves for their livelihoods through fishing and wood.
K-Electric is also bolstering the efforts to evacuate the power from BQPS-III by establishing associated grids at key locations such as Qayumabad and Landhi which are residential and growing industrial hubs of Karachi.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
Comments
Comments are closed.