Premier promises hydel profit payment under AGN Kazi formula

Published January 26, 2019
A file photo of PM Khan giving a speech.
A file photo of PM Khan giving a speech.

PESHAWAR: The federal government has assured the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government of the resolution of issues about the payment of net hydel profit and its arrears to it under the AGN Kazi formula.

The assurance was made during Prime Minister Imran Khan’s meeting with Chief Minister Mahmood Khan in the federal capital, said a statement issued here on Friday.

The statement said the provincial government would form an independent and high-powered authority to use the royalty of oil and gas projects and invest it in the exploration and exploitation of oil and gas in the province.

Imran tells CM province will get representation in OGDCL, NTDC

The chief minister informed the premier about the net hydel profit issue and sought his intervention for its resolution under the AGN Kazi formula.

He also briefed the prime minister about four energy projects in Chitral, electricity produced in the province, and its use for industrial growth or sale.

The statement said the federal government agreed to give representation to KP in the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited, National Transmission and Despatch Company, all boards and forums.

The premier accepted the chief minister’s proposal to grant additional new blocks near the existing Lakki block to the KPOGCL so that the province could execute oil and gas related projects and facilitate investment.

The chief minister also briefed the prime minister about 356 micro-hydel projects executed in the province for the provision of cheap electricity to people in far-off areas, where water resources are untapped.

He said work on mini-hydel power stations had been completed, while a mechanism for running them had devised.

The chief minister said those power stations would be handed over to the local communities within two to three months. He said the communities would own, run and manage those stations on their own.

The statement said the meeting also decided that measures would be taken to control oil and gas theft in the province. Mr Mahmood highlighted the exploitation of natural resources in the province for the people’s development.

“We have a comprehensive multidimensional plan covering all sectors, where the provincial government will begin projects for the long-term sustainable development,” he said.

The chief minister said the government was focusing attention to explore productive areas and execute money-generating projects to achieve self-sufficiency.

TOURISM PROMOTION: Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Friday announced that the government was committed to promoting tourism as an industry in the province.

“Our government is working to ensure easy access of local and foreign tourists to the attractive and beautiful tourism sites,” he said.

The chief minister was talking to a delegation of investors led by MPA Nazir Abbasi at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat here.

According to a statement issued here, head of delegation Henri (Hans) WR Kennedie, president and CEO of Swiss International Hotels & Resorts, revealed that they were working on establishing luxury hotels in several cities of the province.

He said hotels would be established in Peshawar and Swat in the first phase and in Mardan, Chitral and Malakand in the second phase.

The visitors showed interest in investing money in the development of tourism spots on the proposal of the chief minister.

The chief minister said 20 new sites had been identified in Chitral, Malakand and Hazara for tourism promotion for which both national and international investment would be welcomed and facilitated.

He said reconstruction and rehabilitation of access roads to those sites were in progress.

The chief minister said the establishment of ski resorts at tourism spots had already been taken up with the Pakistan Air Force.

Published in Dawn, January 26th, 2019

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