WB okays additional financing of $700m for Dasu power project

ISLAMABAD: The World Bank has approved a $700 million additional financing for a transmission line for Dasu Hydropower Project that would provide affordable electricity supply to users.

The World Bank said the additional financing for the Dasu Hydropower Stage I Project will finance the transmission line to complete the first phase of the Dasu hydropower project that will install 2,160 MW capacity along the main Indus River.

Plans for Stage II expansion will double the installed capacity to 4,320MW, making Dasu hydropower the largest hydropower plant in the country.

The project will help to lower the overall cost of energy generation in Pakistan, benefiting millions of energy users by making electricity more affordable for households and productive sectors.

Pakistan’s Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) is implementing the project, which is estimated to cost $4.2bn. The hydro facility is planned to enter service in 2023.

World Bank Pakistan country director Illango Patchamuthu said: “Pakistan’s energy sector is aiming to move away from high-cost and inefficient fossil fuels towards low-cost, renewable energy to power the national grid.

Dasu Hydropower Plant is run of the river project with a total installed capacity of 4,320MW, comprising two phases of 2160 MW each. The project is being constructed on the Indus River, 74 kilometres downstream of Bhasha Dam site in district Kohistan in KP.

The overall cost of Dasu Hydropower Plant (stage-1) has reached to Rs 510.980 billion.