The Kohala Hydro Project is located an the Jhelum River near Muzaffarabad District. The dam site is proposed just upstream of Domel, 174km from Islamabad and will have an installed capacity of 1,100MW. The average annual energy generation of the main power station will be 5.079 billion kWh. The project is part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) under the Belt and Road Initiative.

 

Project Information

Project name
Kohala Hydro Power Project

Type
Energy

Location
Jhelum River near Muzaffarabad District, Azad-Jammu-Kashmir, Pakistan

BRI Corridor
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)

Project Start
Already in 2007, a feasibility study, preparing the Kohala hydro power project, was conducted by international consulting companies. In 2008, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for implementing the project, was signed in Beijing between the Ministry of Water and Power of Pakistan and the China International Water & Electric Corporation (CWE), a subsidiary of China Three Gorges Corporation. But it took until 2015 for the Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB) to issue a Letter of Support for the project. Since 2014 the Project is listed as “Actively Promoted Project” under the CPEC.

Planned completion
December 31, 2025, the construction period is expected to be 6.5 years.

Projected Total Project Costs
USD 2,364.05 million

Chinese Involvement
Build, Own, Operate and Transfer

Capacity
The Kohala Hydro Power Plant will have an installed capacity of 1,100 MW.

Electricity Price
National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) approved on April 9, 2015 the stage price of 7.2365/kwh.

Operator
The Kohala Hydro Company (Pvt.) Limited was incorporated in 2015 and is responsible for executing the Kohala Hydropower Project. The company belongs to China Three Gorges South Asia Investment Ltd., a company established in 2011 on the Cayman Islands. The shareholders of China Three Gorges South Asia Investment Ltd., include China Three Gorges Corporation (with 70 percent) – who formed it – the Silk Road Fund (with 15 percent) and International Finance Corporation (with 15 percent). The China Three Gorges South Asia Investment is involved in multiple CPEC projects, such as the Three Gorges Second and Third Wind Farm and the Karot Hydro Power Plant. After 30 years of operation the power station will be transferred to Pakistan free of charge.

Financing
The China Three Gorges South Asia Investment Limited is the main sponsor of the Kohala Hydropower Project. Financial closure is expected to be reached in 2019. Sinosure insures the project, like almost all other CPEC projects.

Additional Project Information
Around 35-80 households will be relocated.

Further Information
Approval of Feasibility Stage Tariff Proposal