The Daily Times, Dec 24
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Wednesday formed a committee to resolve all impediments delaying the construction of the Diamer-Bhasha dam.
The committee – consisting of ministers for Water and Power, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, Information, Labour and Manpower and Inter-Provincial Coordination and the deputy chairman of the Planning Commission – has been tasked with resolving all outstanding issues with stakeholders and develop a broader consensus on the project. The prime minister was informed that the dam would usher in a new era of socio-economic development for Gilgit-Baltistan and Kohistan areas through massive investment and would create thousands of employment opportunities for the local population.
The prime minister expressed satisfaction over the fact that the project would generate energy worth $4 million per day while the annual energy, water and other economic benefits from the project would come to $2.19 billion. The meeting was informed that the Diamer-Bhasha dam, with a live storage capacity of 6.4 million acre feet (MAF) would not only have the electricity generation capacity of 4,500 megawatts (MW) but would also realise the agricultural potential of the area and enhance the life of the Tarbela reservoir by reducing the inflow of silt.
The construction cost of the project is $11.17 billion. The meeting was briefed that the main dam would be constructed at a height of 272 meters with roller-compacted concrete. The main spillway would have 14 gates and the gross capacity of the reservoir would be 8.1 MAF. The powerhouses would have 12 units generating 375MW each, and the average generation would be 18,000 gigawatt hours per year. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\12\24\story_24-12-2009_pg7_14
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