Islamabad: The federal government on Thursday reported increasing the funds allocation for the Diamer-Basha dam project by adding over PKR 39 billion to the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) 2019-2020, according to news sources.
Reportedly, the government had directed the planning commission to ask the ministries and divisions for unutilized funds in their respective domains — with funds worth PKR 39.311 billion identified through this process. This amount has now been diverted for the development of the Diamer-Basha dam project.
The planning commission is all set to release the funds upon request. As per the information available, the government is looking to fast-track the development work on the Diamer-Basha project and is therefore making efforts to gather sufficient funds — with project completion estimated to cost about PKR 1.407 trillion.
The Diamer-Basha Dam is expected to be completed by 2028. It will have a storage capacity of 8.1 million acre-feet (MAF) water, and a power generation capacity of 18.1 billion units per annum. The government will provide PKR 406 billion for the development of the project, while the remaining PKR 997 billion will be arranged by the Water & Power Development Authority (WAPDA) through a PKR 100 billion equity — as well as commercial financing and issuing Eurobonds.
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