960420

Bin Qasim unit

to meet Karachi

power demand

by end of July

ASHRAF KHAN

KARACHI: Power projects in public sector will be generating about 875 mw additional electricity by the turn of the current year, including 210 mw from Bin Qasim unit-6, being commissioned by Karachi Electricity Supply Corporation (KESC), it was learnt.

"KESC Bin Qasim unit-6, scheduled to be commissioned in July, will help appease the current shortage of power supply in the metropolis" a KESC official told Business Recorder on Saturday.

Moreover, by the year 2000 there will be total 6166 mw additional electricity available to feed national transmission lines through public and private sector producers, another source said.

Giving the commissioning schedule of generation projects, the source said 320 mw Muzaffargarh steam project could be on line in November this year. Unit-6 of the said project has already been commissioned in December, 1995 Kot Addu power project unit-15 having a capacity of 100 mw, however, is facing some cash flow problems which have delayed its commissioning from March to October, 1996. The other problems were Customs clearance and suspension of KFW-A German lending agency loan, they said.

Unit-I of Hubco power project will be ready to generate power in June the trial generation is expected to start within a week or so, sources said.

The rest of the units of the 1292 mw complex, i.e. 2, 3, and 4, will start their operation in November, 1996, February and April 1997 respectively. Chashma low head units 1-8 of 23 mw each (184 mw) will start respectively from January, 1998 and rest of the units will be functioning in subsequent months, becoming fully operative by October, 1998.

The commissioning of mega hydel power project of Ghazi Barotha has been delayed for a year, sources said, due to very boiler physical progress. The original time table of commissioning of the project has been revised from December 1999 to November 2000. All the five units of Ghazi Barotha of 290 mw each, will begin their operation in November 2000. The total capacity of the plants is 1450 mw.

Under the private power projects about 2400 mw electricity will be available through different projects within two years, the financial close has been achieved by these projects and construction has been started.