China, Pakistan Sign Kohala Hydropower Agreements
Implementation And Water Usage Deal Reached Between AJK Government and China Three Gorges Company
5 May 2021 by The Water Diplomat
Islamabad, Pakistan
The government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Pakistan, has signed agreements with China Three Gorges Company on implementation and water usage relating to the 1124 MW Kohala hydroelectric power project on the Jhelum river under the auspices of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
According to a tweet sent by the CPEC on 23 April, attendees of the signing ceremony included federal minister of Energy Hammad Azhar and AJK prime minister Raja Farooq Haider.
The run-of-the-river high-head project will bring an investment of $2.4 billion, marking China's largest in Pakistan to-date.
The Kohala Hydropower Project is the second of six hydropower schemes planned for the Jhelum river, which is a branch of the Indus river in AJK. The project agreement was finalised in 2020 and is expected to be completed in 2027. The first is the Karot Hydropower Station, which has an installed capacity of 720 MW at a cost of $1.7 billion and is being built by China Gezhouba Group Company Limited. It is due to enter operation in December of this year.
The CPEC is collection of infrastructure projects underway in Pakistan since 2013, most recently valued at around $62 billion. In addition to hydropower, energy and transportation projects include coal-fired power plants, wind and solar farms, transmission lines and road-building.