Construction continued on all key sites of the Tarbela 5th Extension, and it will begin electricity generation in 2026.
World Bank’s Executive Directors were informed about this during their visit to Tarbela Dam on Tuesday. At Tarbela 5th Extension, the delegation witnessed construction activities on the Inlet, Tunnel and the Power House sites.
Chairman WAPDA Engr Lt Gen Sajjad Ghani (Retd) accompanied the delegation during the visit.
Tarbela Dam, Tarbela Hydel Power Station and its 4th Extension were completed with financial support from the World Bank. In addition, the Bank is also providing $390 million for the under-construction Tarbela 5th Extension Hydropower Project.
During the briefing, the delegation was informed that Tarbela Dam has been phenomenally contributing to economic development and social uplift in Pakistan since its completion in 1974. It has released about 411 million acre-feet (MAF) of stored water from the reservoir for agriculture, besides providing and contributing 597,309 million units of low-cost and environment-friendly hydel electricity to the National Grid.
It is important to note that the economic and financial benefits of one MAF of water in Pakistan are estimated at $1 billion. Therefore, total benefits accrued so far from Tarbela Dam stand at $411 billion.
It was further briefed that Tarbela is the biggest electricity generation facility in Pakistan, with an installed capacity of 4888 MW – 51.6 % of the total hydel capacity of WAPDA.
The installed capacity at Tarbela will further increase to 6418 MW after completion of the under-construction Tarbela 5th Extension Hydropower Project.
Tarbela 4th Extension, which started generation in 2018, is dubbed the ‘Flagship Project’ of the World Bank. Since then, it has provided 27,531 million units of electricity to the National Grid. Regarding the Tarbela 5th Extension, the delegation was briefed that construction activities are continuing on all key sites of the Project, while electricity generation will commence in 2026.
The delegation appreciated WAPDA’s contribution to economic stability and social uplift through the efficient implementation of hydro projects, including Tarbela Dam.
The delegation was also informed of the progress on the under-construction Dasu Hydropower Project, for which the World Bank is providing financial support to the tune of US$ 1.588 billion. The Project is progressing ahead with construction activities on as many as 13 key sites. Power generation from the Project is scheduled for 2026.
