Arshad Ayub, Irrigation minister, inaugurated the Kotkay small hydropower project, which cost more than Rs 2 billion to build.
“This initiative will not only generate power, but it will also irrigate large tracts of barren land,” the minister said at the inaugural ceremony. He stated that the provincial government generated electricity for the first time in order to meet the province’s demand and reduce the country‘s energy shortfall.
According to the minister, the district had irrigation issues in some areas, however, its lands were mostly deserted or rain-fed. He stated that the project would help growers’ lives. Mr Ayub stated that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf would form the next provincial government following the dissolution of the assembly.
Moreover, The French Development Agency (AFD) will provide a soft loan to encourage the construction of a 128-megawatt hydropower plant in Pakistan, with the goal of increasing the country’s clean energy share and improving energy security.
Dr Kazim Niaz, Secretary of the Economic Affairs Division (EAD), French Ambassador Nicolas Galey, and AFD country director Philippe Steinmetz signed a credit facility agreement for €120 million (PKR 29 billion) to finance the Keyal Khwar hydropower project in Islamabad.
“This soft loan will support the Water & Power Development Authority (WAPDA) – in its mandate of hydroelectricity sector development in Pakistan,” official statement said, adding, “The funding will also help enhance the competitiveness of renewable power generation. Such benefits will contribute to improving affordability and scaling up the energy supply.”
The 128-megawatt (MW) facility is situated in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, near the city of Pattan. The Keyal Khwar hydropower project will add 420 giga-tonnes of clean energy to the country’s energy mix each year by harnessing the energy potential of an Indus River tributary.
The project will contribute to Pakistan’s strategy to develop green energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in line with the French Government’s agenda of promoting climate-friendly projects, as well as the French promise and commitments declared at the International Conference on Climate Resilient Pakistan on January 9, 2023, in Geneva.