February 1, 2006	Wednesday	Muharram 2, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 31: Water and Power Minister Liaquat Ali Jatoi on Tuesday directed the concerned quarters to expedite progress on the Munda dam project.

Presiding over the 60th meeting of the Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB), he asked the sponsors to complete the feasibility study of the project by May this year.

The board was informed that Munda dam was one of the largest hydel power and water storage projects and it would be built at an expected investment of $1 billion. The project is designed to provide 740mw of electricity and have a water storage capacity of 1.3 Million Acre Feet.

The board approved seven new raw hydel sites already under development in the private sector. It approved guidelines for processing of unsolicited raw site co-generation projects based on the policy approved by the Economic Coordination Committee.

These guidelines would help in obtaining an additional power generation capacity of up to 700mw from different sugar mills. Also, it would improve utilisation of domestic energy resources.

The board reviewed progress on fast track projects of 1450mw and agreed that other such projects should be encouraged.

The PPIB approved engagement of consultants selected through competition for developing the standard security package which includes power purchase agreement, implementation agreement, coal supply agreement, water usage licence for coal and hydel power plants.