The government of France has agreed to provide more than 50 million euros for the up-gradation of two hydel power stations in Chitral and Dargai areas of Malakand division. According to WAPDA sources, a Memorandum of Understanding has already been signed for this purpose, Radio Pakistan reported.
The generation capacity of Chitral hydel power station will increase from one to five megawatt and Dargai power station from 20 to 22 megawatt after the up-gradation of these powerhouses. It will also help to meet energy needs of Malakand Division. It is worth mentioning that Pakistan stood 3rd across the globe among top 20 countries for newly installed hydropower capacity in 2018.
The ranking was decided by the United Kingdom-based organisation — International Hydropower Association (IHA) — in its recently issued report titled “2019: Hydropower Status Report — Sector Trends and Insights”. According to IHA report, Pakistan managed to add 2,487MW of hydel electricity in 2018 following China and Brazil at the first and second positions that added 8,540MW and 3,866MW to their systems respectively. The report stated India’s position as 8th position by adding 535MW hydel electricity to its system recently.—INP
