CPEC project almost complete to excavate 7.8 MTPA coal by December 31

Karachi: Sino-Sindh Resources (SSR) has completed 99 percent of work to excavate 7.8 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) coal by December 31, 2022 under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Sino-Sindh Resources (SSR) had started coal excavation work in Block-I in January 2022 and it has completed 99 percent of work. It is a CPEC project.

The Power Engineering Company has installed two 660 Megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plants for US $2 billion. Both the power plants have been successfully synchronized with the national grid on December 2 and December 11, 2022.

On Monday, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said that 1320 MW of coal-fired energy has been added to the national grid during the current month and another 660 MW would be added next year.

Presiding over a board meeting of Thar Coal Energy here at the CM’s House, the CM pledged that energy crises will soon be a thing of the past.

The meeting was attended by Minister education Syed Sardar Shah, Minister Energy Imtiaz Shaikh, Advisor to CM on Law Murtaza Wahab, Chief Secretary Sohail Rajput and others.

Federal Minister Shazia Marri, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Bajwa, Federal Secretary Energy Rashid Langrial, Federal Secretary Law Raja Naeem Akbar, and others attended the meeting through video link.

Sindh Minister for Energy Imtiaz Shaikh briefed the CM and the meeting. He mentioned that SSR had completed 99 percent of work to excavate large quantities of coal.

Imtiaz Shaikh told the Chief Minister that the Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECM) planned to expand the mine from 7.6 MTPA to 12.2 MTPA mine.

He said that Lucky Electric Power has started work on a 660 MW power plant for which it would be supplied 3.6 MTPA coal. This plant would start commercial operation in 2024.

Thar Energy has already synchronized its 330 MW coal-fired power plant with the national Grid in October 2022 and another 330 MW would start commercial operation by 2023.