ISLAMBAD:
The government has decided to merge the Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) and the Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB) for ease of doing business in the power sector.
As envisioned by the government under the ease of doing business initiative, work on the merger of AEDB into PPIB is in full swing for processing power projects of all technologies, including alternative and renewable energy projects, at one place.
In this regard, Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar was briefed on success stories in the power sector of Pakistan during a visit to the PPIB office on Thursday.
In a detailed presentation, PPIB Managing Director Shah Jahan Mirza briefed the minister about PPIB’s functions, achievements and future endeavours.
PPIB has various success stories in successive rounds of power policies announced from time to time. As a result, since its inception, the PPIB has helped develop 40 independent power plants (IPPs) of more than 17,550 megawatts in the country worth around $20 billion. These IPPs are based on multiple fuels/technologies.
It was highlighted that for promoting domestic resources, for the first time in the energy history of Pakistan, hydel and Thar coal-based IPPs were being established.
In this regard, the PPIB has played an instrumental role in achieving a historical breakthrough as coal reserves at Thar are being exploited with coal mining and power generation projects. Of these, 660MW Engro power project has already been completed and is supplying electricity to the national grid while another three projects of 1,320MW are under construction.
Similarly, for generating eco-friendly and cheap electricity, two large-sized hydel IPPs, namely 720MW Karot and 884MW Suki Kinari, are at advanced stages of construction work, which are likely to be completed in December 2021 and December 2022 respectively.
