China offers $50 bn for hydroelectric projects in Pakistan

China's state-run power company, Three Gorges Corporation (CTG), is keen to participate in a financing consortium to fund up to $50 billion of hydroelectric power projects in Pakistan, a media report said.

This disclosure was made at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Energy on June 18.

CTG expressed interest in financing projects in Pakistan in conjunction with the International Finance Corporation, a World Bank subsidiary, the Express Tribune reported today.

"The offer comes on top of the $46 billion in financing for power and transportation infrastructure being provided by the Chinese government and Chinese banks to Pakistan for the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor," the paper reported.

If the offer pans out, it would make China the biggest financier of infrastructure in Pakistan by far.

CTG owns and operates the world's biggest Three Gorges Dam, having a capacity of 22,500 Mw, which is equal to Pakistan's total installed capacity of 23,500 Mw.

Pakistan has a potential of producing up to 60,000 Mw of hydroelectric power, of which 40,000 Mw is located in a region called the Indus Cascade, which begins in Skardu in Gilgit- Baltistan and runs through to Tarbela, the site of Pakistan's biggest dam, in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

The biggest project the government has already identified and begun preliminary work on is the Diamer Bhasha dam, which would require $15 billion to construct and would have a nameplate capacity of 4,500 Mw.

Pakistan is trying to end crippling energy crisis and already started several projects to tackle the power outages by the end of 2017.