Faisalabad Electric to Overhaul 13 Grid Stations as Pakistan Targets 1,000 Megawatts of Rental Power Generation by 2009

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Punjab, Pakistan) plans to revamp 13 grid stations at a cost of $35 million, financed by the Asian Development Bank. The firm plans to upgrade the 132-kilovolt-ampere thermal grid stations at various locations in Faisalabad, including the stations at Agriculture University, the Chiniot Road, Factory area, Narwala Road and Samundri Road. The company also will install 40-megavolt-ampere (MVA) transformers at each grid station, and it plans to have a 450-MVA transformer installed at the 500-kilovolt (kV) grid station in Gatti. Faisalabad Electric incurs an annual expenditure of $15 million in the operation and maintenance of its distribution network.

Pakistan's government is implementing a comprehensive strategy with short-, mid- and long-term measures to combat the country's power crisis. Under the short-term program, rental power plants with a combined generation capacity of 1,000 megawatts (MW) are expected to come into operation between January and April 2009. The government also proposes to control load shedding by the end of 2009.

Four rental power plants with a cumulative generation capacity of 592 MW are expected to go into operation by December 2008. A 150-MW rental power plant in Samundri Road, Faisalabad, and rental plants in Guddu with a cumulative capacity of 100 MW are likely to be commissioned by November 2008. Two furnace-oil-based rental power plants, one in Prianghaib Multan with a capacity of 192 MW and another in Sahuwala, Sialkot, with a capacity of 150 MW, are scheduled to be commissioned by December 2008.

Four more rental power plants are expected to generate 700 MW of power by March 2009. These include three furnace-oil-based rental power plants with a capacity of 200 MW each that are under construction at Satiana Road, Ludewala Sargodha and Quetta. These are likely to be commissioned by January, February and March 2009, respectively. A 100-MW gas-based power plant in Nooriabad is also expected to come into operation by March 2009.

Pakistan's National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has awarded consent to Progas Power Bin Qasim Limited to develop a 345-MW rental power project based on liquefied petroleum gas near Port Qasim. NEPRA has also determined a maximum power generation tariff of USD .1155 cents per kWh for a period of 25 years for a 486-MW liquefied-petroleum-gas-based rental power plant near Port Qasim. NEPRA has also approved a power generation tariff of USD .1214 cents per kWh proposed by Ruba Energy Pakistan Private Limited to set up a 172-MW rental power plant on Gujranwala Road, Lahore. Lakhra Power Generation Company Limited (Lahore, Pakistan) has approached NEPRA seeking extension of rental power generation capacity from 150 MW to 628.95 MW to enable the firm to develop rental power plants in Karachi.

On September 26, Pakistan's government initiated a "Fast Track Private Power Projects" initiative and invited technical proposals through an international competitive bidding process. The initiative includes two packages: Package I for rental power projects with a cumulative generation capacity of 500 MW and independent power projects to be commissioned by the end of 2009; and Package II for independent power projects to be commissioned by the end of 2010. The government received three bids for rental power projects by the deadline of October 30, including a 220.9-MW project by Independent Power Private Limited, a 200-MW project by Alstom SA (EPA:ALO) (Levallois-Perret, France), and an 80.5-MW project by Gulf Rental Power. Financial proposals for these bids are scheduled to open on November 22 after a review of the technical proposals by a bid evaluation committee comprising representatives from the Private Power and Infrastructure Board, NEPRA, National Transmission and Dispatch Company Limited (Lahore), Water and Power Development Authority, and the Finance Ministry. Notification of qualified bidders will be issued on December 10, and letters of award will be issued by December 31. The rental power projects are expected to be commissioned by June 2009. Bids for Package II of the power projects are scheduled to be opened on November 29.

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