KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Tuesday said that Thar Coal Block-I project comprises a 7.8-million-tonne-per-annum (Mtpa) open-pit coal mine and installation of a 1.3 GW ultra-supercritical coal-fired power plant.

“The coal mining work has been completed by 40 per cent and I will visit the project by the end of this month,” CM Shah said while talking to a delegation of Thar Coal Block-I Power Generation Co led by its CEO Meng Donghai.

The delegation members include Sino-Sindh Resour­ces Ltd (SSRL) CEO Li Jigen, Deputy CEO Huang Jinting and Deputy CEO Chaudhary Qayyum. The meeting was attended among others by Sindh Energy Minister Imtiaz Shaikh, Principal Secretary Sajid Jamal Abro and Sindh Energy Secretary Tariq Shah.

Briefing the CM, Mr Donghai said that over 40pc mining work had been completed while work on the power plant was also in progress. “Mining work would be completed by the end of 2021 and the first unit of the power plant would also start working from 2022. The entire project would be completed by 2023,” he added.

The Sindh CM said that the success of the Thar Coal Block-I mining and power plant would be the success of his government. “We have worked day and night to materialise coal mining and power projects in Thar and I am happy that the projects are completed successfully,” he said.

The visiting delegation requested the chief minister to resolve their water issue.

Published in Dawn, February 3rd, 2021