LAHORE: Engineers working at the Dasu Hydropower Project site have succeeded in temporarily diverting the mighty Indus River flow so that digging can be started on a dry riverbed.
The river will now flow through a 1.33-kilometre-long diversion tunnel instead of its natural course. The tunnel is 20 metres wide and 23 metres high, according to the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda).
Another 1.5km tunnel, with 20 metres width and 23 metres height, will also be ready by mid-April to cater to more water when the river flow is high.
Construction has now begun on the starter dam, leading towards the construction of the main dam of the Dasu Hydropower Project, which is being constructed in the Dasu town of Upper Kohistan district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The dry river bed will help workers dig the site for up to 40 metres to start work on the 242-metre-high dam.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to formally inaugurate the river’s diversion work by March 15, Dawn has learnt.
“The core objective behind this temporary diversion [achieved through dynamite explosion] is not only to ensure smooth flow of the river but also to start construction of the dam, for which we need dry land,” a Wapda official told Dawn.
The site would be dug 40 metres down the riverbed to build water retaining walls of 202 metres of height, he said, adding that the total height of the dam — under and over the ground within an area of 1.33km — is 242 metres.
“Once we complete the dam, the diversion will be closed and the river flow will return to its natural route,” the official said.
The river diversion was witnessed by the general manager and project director, representatives of the contractors and consultants, and several engineers and workers. Wapda Chairman Sajjad Ghani congratulated the project management on achieving this task.
The 4,320-megawatt Dasu Hydropower Project is planned to be completed in two stages, with an installed generation capacity of 2,160 MW each.
Wapda is working on the first stage, which will generate 12 billion units a year once it is completed in 2026. The second stage, when implemented, will also provide 9bn units to the national grid.
On completion, the Dasu power project will become the project with the highest annual energy generation in Pakistan, generating 21bn units a year on average.
Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2023
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