The PPIB Board accorded approval for subject project processing under the Guidelines for setting up of Private Power Projects under Short Term Capacity Addition Initiative-August 2010 and also approved issuance of LOI to the sponsors upon on meeting all requirements as per the Guidelines.
Engro Powergen plans to develop the 2x330MW power plant which uses indigenous Thar lignite coal, to be supplied by Thar Block-II lease holder Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company.
Scheduled to commence commercial operation by December 2017, the project is expected to reduce Pakistan’s dependence on costly oil based power generation while saving millions of dollars of foreign exchange.
Till date, the abundant coal resource remains unexploited and is estimated at around 186 billion tons out of which 175 billion tons are found in Thar alone, PPIB believes.
However, the Pakistan Government aims to develop Thar coal and utilize it on commercial basis as well as for power generation.
In next few years, Thar Coal would become Energy Capital of Pakistan, the Water and Power Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said.
