Pakistan, China sign hydel power generation pact

[Naveed Yaseen]

* Beijing to provide technical assistance to Islamabad for hydroelectric power generation

YICHANG: Pakistan and China signed an agreement here on Sunday for cooperation in hydel power generation.

WAPDA Chairman Shakeel Durrani and China’s Three Gorges Project Corporation President Li Yong’an signed the agreement with President Asif Ali Zardari in attendance. Under the agreement, China would assist Pakistan technically in hydel power generation. The president earlier held talks with Li Yong’an, and called for cooperation in the energy sector. Zardari said the aim of his visit to China was to study the Chinese power generation model and development in agriculture.

Li Yong’an said his corporation was ready to assist Pakistan in every possible way to overcome its energy challenges.

He also briefed Zardari on the Three Gorges Dam on Yangtze River in the central Hubei province. The dam is the world’s largest with a capacity of 22,500 megawatts. The president also visited the site of the dam later, and told reporters that Pakistan “has a lot of potential in hydropower generation and it can secure a future in the energy sector by building new dams”.

“Pakistan has not benefited to the extent that it should from its relations with China. We would like China to help us in the construction of a dam similar to this one,” he told reporters.

The president is scheduled to hold meetings with executives of top financial institutions on Monday. app

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...2009_pg1_3