26. October 2018
For many years, Pakistan has suffered from serious electricity shortages. In 2015, peak demand was roughly 26 TW, but out-of-date infrastructure meant that only around 20 TW was available. The authorities have put in place an action plan to improve the situation, and the contracts won by Multiconsult are part of that process.
Two separate locations
The first contract is for an environmental impact assessment for Gharo substation and associated grid infrastructure in Sindh, a province in southeastern Pakistan. Gharo receives power from large private wind farms on the coast near Karachi.
The other contract is for an environmental impact assessment for Chakwal substation and associated grid infrastructure in the province of Punjab in northeastern Pakistan. Chakwal receives electricity from Tarbela hydroelectric power station.
Major benefits to society
“Pakistan is now investing extremely heavily in renewable energy, it is very rewarding to be involved in that. The work is interesting from a technical point of view, we have excellent partners and the local people are desperately in need of more electricity”, says Multiconsult’s team leader David Alan Wright.
Upgrading the grid to reduce power losses is one of the main priorities in the authorities’ action plan to improve the electricity supply system in Pakistan. Other measures include lowering the price of electricity, speeding up permitting processes and improving payment solutions for buying electricity.