ISLAMABAD: The federal government has directed the Ministry of Interior to ensure foolproof security for the Chinese and resolve all outstanding issues with immediate effect under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Pak-China Relations Steering Committee held its third meeting under the chair of Federal Minister for Planning Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar. The committee met for discussing the 660 KV HDVC Transmission Line Project from Matiari to Lahore.
The decision on Maximum Available Power (MAP) from September 2021 has been outstanding and tariff approval from NEPRA (National Electric Power Regulatory Authority) has also been pending since April 2021. The committee was told the NEPRA was finalising tariff during an upcoming meeting next week.
The committee was further informed the Right of Way Issue (RoA) near Karachi of 660 KV HVDC Matiari-Lahore Transmission Line had been resolved and power was now being evacuated through the transmission line.
The Committee discussed various issues relating to CPEC projects in Power, Infrastructure & Industrial Cooperation Sectors.
The committee was informed a number of issues discussed during the last meeting, had been resolved as per the directions of the committee, while some others were under process for approval of the relevant fora.
The Power Division informed the committee that proposals for extension of CoD of six power projects were under process and the matter would be discussed in the upcoming meeting of the CPPA board.
The committee was also briefed on the 880 MW Sukki Kinari Hydropower Project. The chair directed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government to resolve the operational issues faced by the project on priority.
Secretary Ministry of Communications informed the committee that the Re-alignment of Thakot-Raikkot is a critical component of the northern alignment. The secretary highlighted the G2G technical committee has been formed for the project and the ToRs of the committee had also been shared with the Chinese side for views and comments. The chair also directed that meeting be convened soon under Deputy Chairman Planning Commission to discuss the financing modalities of the project. The committee discussed the issues faced by the investors in different Special Economic Zones.
The Punjab Board of Investment & Trade & KP EPZ Authority updated the committee on the individual issues of various investors. Sindh Investment Department informed that the developer for Dhabeji SEZ had been identified and final approval would be granted soon. Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, SAPM on CPEC, Secretary Foreign, Secretary Interior, Secretary Railways, Secretary Power, Secretary Finance, National Security Adviser, and senior officers of the Ministries/Divisions and Provincial Departments attended the meeting.
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