KOHISTAN: Indus River has successfully been diverted to tunnel at the project site of Dasu Hydro Power Project in Kohistan district of Khyper Pakhtunkhwa.
According to WAPDA spokesperson, “the construction work has been initiated on temporary dam after diversion of the river.”
“The work on the main dam of hydro power project will begin after completion of the temporary dam,” according to the spokesperson.
Wapda has stated that the second under construction diversion tunnel will be completed by the mid of April this year. “During the high flow season, the water of Indus River will pass through both diversion tunnels,” spokesperson said.
داسو ڈیم : چینی کمپنی داسو ڈیم پر دریائے سندھ کو 50 منٹ تک روکنے میں کامیاب ہو گئے۔
منصوبہ نئے مرحلے میں داخل ہو گیا ۔ دریا کے پانی کو ڈیم کے ٹنل میں کامیابی سے منتقل کر دیا گیا۔ pic.twitter.com/3YPm8NjmU8— China-Pakistan Friendship (@DostiChina) February 19, 2023
Wapda spokesperson said that Dasu Hydro Power Project with 4,320-megawatt power generation capacity will be completed in two phases.
The Dasu Dam is a large hydroelectric gravity dam currently under construction on the Indus River near Dasu in Kohistan District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan. It is developed by Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda), as a key component of the company’s Water Vision 2025. The project was started in 2017 but faced a delay due to funds and land acquisition disputes. Work resumed in 2019 after land acquisition and arrangements of funding facility, the World Bank agreed to contributed $700 million of the $4.2 billion as the government of Imran Khan decided to proceed ahead with the construction of the project, as part of his vision of reducing Pakistan’s reliance on non-renewable energy.
The 242 m (794 ft) tall dam will support a 4,320 MW hydropower station, to be built in two 2,160 MW stages. The plant is expected to start generating power in late 2024, and stage I is planned to complete by early 2025. Water from the reservoir will be diverted to the power station located about 3.5 km (2.2 mi) downstream, and the power generation from the first stage is scheduled by 2026-27.
Due to Land acquisition issues, Covid pandemic, and other factors, the expected completion of Dasu Stage-I Hydropower Project has been pushed till FY 2026-27, WAPDA has said earlier.
