Gwadar still lacking access to power, water: progress review

A decade after the launch of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), authorities have realised that Gwadar still faces a lack of clean water and a stable source of power. As per reports, these details were uncovered in a progress review meeting held on Tuesday.

Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal chaired the meeting, during which relevant parties expressed great dissatisfaction regarding the lack of development in Gwadar. However, authorities have set new deadlines for development targets to be met.

A statement issued by the Ministry of Planning revealed that Ahsan Iqbal outlined how Gwadar is still not effectively on the national grid and issued directives to the power division and Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESC) to post a progress report on the status of Gwadar’s power connection.

According to credible reports, Ahsan Iqbal, in the previous review meeting, had requested a ‘compliance report’ to be submitted within a week, under which authorities were expected to connect Gwadar and the surrounding free zone to the national grid.

However, two months have gone by, and limited progress has been made to connect Gwadar to grid electricity. Currently, the city is powered by electricity that Pakistan imports from neighbouring Iran.

Nevertheless, Pakistan does not need to import electricity for Gwadar as there is excess electricity in the system. Reports place the cost of this surplus power to Pakistan at 2.1 trillion rupees in ‘idle capacity charges’, which are paid to power producers by levying an 18 rupee per unit charge on consumers.

The federal government’s efforts to provide Gwadar with the right infrastructure is one of many attempts to revitalize the crown jewel of the CPEC. Recently, Gwadar witnessed the operationalisation of its airport, which was funded by the Chinese government in the form of a grant to Pakistan.

China has also assisted Pakistan in its attempt to provide a stable power supply to Gwadar. As per reports, China gave equipment to relevant authorities to electrify the city and laid out infrastructure to provide clean drinking water to its residents.

China’s equipment for Pakistan included a whopping 15,000 solar panels (of which 5000 were provided under a grant program) and 150 water filtration plants. However, until recently, the installation of this equipment had not been authorized.

With authorities now expected to install the aforementioned equipment, many believe that Gwadar’s need to rely on imported electricity could fall sharply.