Official announced that the 885 megawatts Suki Kanari hydropower project will begin production in 2022.
Project deputy director (commercial and technical) Bilal Khan talked media that “We have completed more than 55 per cent of work and expect that the production of Suki Kanari hydropower project will begin in 2022”.
The Suki Kinari project is one of the biggest private sector hydropower developments in Pakistan located on the Kunhar River in Kaghan valley of Mansehra district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The Suki Kanari hydropower project is the first energy venture to be monitored and supported jointly by the governments of China and Pakistan as part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Bilal Khan said 8,000 people, including 1,000 Chinese nationals were associated with the initiative while only 300 Chinese workers had gone home on leave.
He further said “The return of Chinese engineers and labourers has been suspended since the outbreak of coronavirus in Wuhan city lately but work on the project is in full swing and will be completed as scheduled”.
The official said the Chinese workers had been stopped from leaving the country as a precautionary measure against coronavirus.
He said 760 electric towers had been installed to link the powerhouse with the dam’s tunnels, while Rs33 million had been paid to landowners.
Bilal Khan said almost all due payments had been made to the owners of over 8,000 kanals of land acquired for the project.