LAHORE: The test run of two 900MW power plants—Lucky and Thar Energy Ltd—has paved the way for the launch of their commercial operations within a month or so.

With the addition of these plants, the total generation in the southern region corridor will reach 5,530MW. It will further surge to 5,830MW after Jamshoro Power Plant starts commercial operation by end of this year, Dawn has learnt.

According to a letter issued by the National Power Control Centre (System Operations)—a department of the National Transmission and Despatch Company—both the plants are passing through the test run process before commencing commercial operations.

“In the southern region, the commissioning of Lucky Power Plant (600MW) and Thar Energy (300MW) is underway at the moment,” reads the letter.

The plants already in operation in the southern region—1,240MW China Hub, 600MW Engro Thar, 1,250MW Port Qasim, 200MW (Wind Energy plants), 1,040MW K-2 and 300MW Hubco— are cumulatively generating 4,630MW.

“Of the aforementioned generation, a total of 1,500MW is being used by Sindh—500MW by the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) and 1,000MW by the K-Electric. Thus the remaining 3,130MW is currently being evacuated from the plants and transmitted and depatched to north-urban load centres in Punjab,” an NTDC official explained while talking to Dawn on Saturday.

The official, requesting anonymity, said as soon as the generation reached 4000MW, the testing of 660kV Matiari-Lahore High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission line would be carried out on full load/installed capacity of 4000MW.

Answering a question, he said the line is evacuating power from the plants in AC (alternate current) mode, converting it in DC (direct current) through a convertor station at Matiari (near Hyderabad), and supplying it to Punjab in AC mode after converting it at a convertor station, near Lahore.

“Keeping in view the increasing demand, the construction of some more power plants in the southern corridor is also being planned,” he maintained.

Published in Dawn, January 30th, 2022