Press Releases 2009
The United States Announces The Pakistan Signature Energy Program
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
Media Note
October 29, 2009
Islamabad - Following her meeting with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi at the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad yesterday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the first phase of a Signature Energy Program in Pakistan aimed at increasing electricity output and conserving wasted energy and money. The six projects will provide funding to repair generation facilities, improve the effectiveness of local utilities providers, replace inefficient tube well pumps and promote energy efficiency.
Pakistan's energy crisis developed over many years and cannot be solved overnight. The six projects that Secretary Clinton announced today will help begin the process of alleviating the electricity blackouts that cripple commerce and cause suffering in daily life for millions of Pakistanis.
- Replace or repair 11,000 agricultural irrigation tube well pumps: A tube well pump set is a tube or pipe bored into the underground reservoir, fitted with a strainer at the lower end and worked at the top by a pump, to lift water for irrigation. Agricultural tube well pump sets are a major component of peak electricity demand in Pakistan and are used by a majority of farmers across the country.
- Jamshoro Thermal Power Station sits on the banks of the Indus River near the city of Hyperabad in Sindh Province. The Station operates well below full capacity because of the lack of spare parts for critical equipment and the accumulated effects of burning high sulfur fuel oil. This project will rehabilitate, refurbish and upgrade targeted components in order to recapture some of the lost capacity at the plant and bring the operational performance from 700 MW to 795 MW - an additional 530 GWh/year of electricity for the national grid.
- Muzaffargarh Thermal Power Station is located between the Indus and Chenab Rivers near the city of Multan in Punjab Province. This project will rehabilitate, refurbish, and upgrade targeted components in order to recapture some of the power station's lost capacity and bring its performance closer to optimum. The project will result in a capacity gain of 165 MW and a production of approximately 1,185 GHh/year of electricity for the national grid. When these activities are completed, the Muzaffargarh Station will save $17 million in fuel per year.
- Guddu Thermal Power Station is situated on the right bank of the Indus River at the confluence of the three provinces of Sindh, Punjab, and Balochistan. The station operates well below full capacity because of its aging and deteriorated gas turbines. This targeted rehabilitation project will restore 33 to 55 MW of the power station's lost capacity and produce an additional 237 to 372 GWh/year for the national grid. The more efficient units will save approximately $2.3 million per year.
- The Tarbela Dam Hydroelectric Power Station is located on the Indus River in the NWFP. The dam can operate up to 3,700MW during the high water flow months of the summer, but even then it cannot always achieve maximum capacity. The U.S. will order and install higher performance insulation windings for the power station, establish a supply of essential spares and provide training for staff. The expected result will be an increase of 80 MW in capacity or 192 million kilowatt hours of power.
- Electricity Distribution Company Performance Improvement: Pakistan's electricity distribution system is a major weakness that costs the government and consumers millions each year. Electric power distribution companies in Pakistan lose almost a third of the electricity they purchase, and some companies lose 50 percent or more. Weak management, non-payment by government and consumers for electricity consumed, and high technical losses from worn-out equipment results in poor financial performances by the electricity distribution companies. The U.S. will work closely with four of the nine public distribution companies over the next three years, aiming to bring electricity loss levels down to those of well-run distribution companies in developed countries. Every one percent of loss reduction system wide represents $97 million in savings to Pakistani consumers and additional power for economic development.