Pakistan starts negotiations to import Iranian electricity to power up Gwadar Port

The PM Imran Khan-led Pakistan Government on August 13 commenced negotiations for importing 70 to 100-megawatt Iranian electricity to power up Gwadar Port located on the shores of the Arabian Sea opposite Oman as even Tehran has been granted surplus. Gwadar Port is owned by the government-owned Gwadar Port Authority and operated by China Overseas Port Holding Company (COPHC), a state-run Chinese firm. The decision surfaced during the Cabinet Committee on China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CCoCPEC) session under the chairmanship of Pakistan's Federal Minister for Development.

Gwadar Port is set to be completed by 2023 and is delayed owing to a set of reasons, especially COVID-led disruptions. Provision of electricity to the deep seaport as the 300 MW power plant is under construction, and a transmission line of 220KV would be constructed to connect with the national grid in the coming years. The meeting observed that the only available option was importing 70 to 100 MW power from Iran. Tehran was earlier providing electricity to Balochistan, but after witnessing a decrease in its hydel production, it suspended it in the last couple of years. 

Land dispute between Pakistan Coast Guard and Pakistan Navy

The meeting between CCoCPEC and Pakistan's Ministry did not take up the land feud between the Pakistan Coast Guard and Pakistan Navy as the land of 50 to 70 acres would be provided to a Chinese entity for developing Gwadar Master Plan. The verification of land records was underway in the constitution with the Defence Ministry, and this issue would be resolved. Out of 2,500 acres of land, the Chinese company had possession of 70 to 75 per cent of the land. 

Pakistani authorities also elucidated on the international investors who are keen to relocate industries into Gwadar Free Zone. Also, Chinese entities informed the CCoCPEC meeting that provisions such as electricity, clean drinking water and other infrastructure requirements would contribute to luring investment into Gwadar Free Economic Zone. Without basic facilities, the expectation of attracting investors would remain a pipe dream, the meeting noted. 

Projects under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

Numerous projects undertaken by the CPEC, including those in the power sector, have witnessed delays due to the pandemic. The CPEC multi-billion-dollar economic aegis has not completed projects in three years and could not maintain impetus that delivered a series of power plants and other infra-projects across phases of the CPEC implementation.

Regarded as one of the significant components of the USD 60 billion Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), CPEC has faced opposition from political parties and unions in Pakistan. Furthermore, the hype instigated by the Pakistan government by projecting CPEC as a remedy to all crises has lost its steam. Due to disputes over debts and China's hegemony in BRI contracts, the Communist regime has face backlashes by multiple countries forced China to stall various projects.

Image Credit: AP