Sahiwal Coal Power Project

Huaneng Shandong Ruyi Energy (Pakistan) Private (Limited)
Location of the Sahiwal Coal Power Project
Official name	Huaneng Shandong Ruyi Energy (Pakistan) Private (Limited)
Country	Pakistan
Location	Sahiwal, Punjab
Coordinates	30°42′55″N 73°14′20″E / 30.71528°N 73.23889°E / 30.71528; 73.23889Coordinates: 30°42′55″N 73°14′20″E / 30.71528°N 73.23889°E / 30.71528; 73.23889
Status	Under Construction
Construction began	February 2015
Construction cost	$1.80 billion USD
Owner(s)	Huaneng Shandong and Shandong Ruyi Science & Technology Group
Thermal power station
Primary fuel	Bituminous coal
Power generation
Nameplate capacity	1,320 MW
Website http://www.chng.com.cn/eng/

The Sahiwal Coal Power Project is a coal power plant project 15 kilometers (9.3 mi) to the northeast of Sahiwal in Pakistan's Province which is currently under construction.^[1] The power plant will be Pakistan's first supercritical coal power plant, and will consist of two 660-megawatt (890,000 hp) plants for a combined capacity of 1,320 MW in the first phase,^[2] and is to be followed by a possible second phase which will include two 1,000-megawatt (1,300,000 hp) plants.^[3]

Though the plant is now considered to be part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which was announced in April 2015, symbolic ground breaking for the project actually preceded the announcement of CPEC and took place in May 2014,^[4] as the government of Punjab in March 2014 invited bids for the construction of two 660MW power plants in order to help alleviate Pakistan's energy shortfalls.^[5]

The plant is being constructedby a joint consortium of China's state-owned Huaneng Shandong which will own 51% of shares, and the Shandong Ruyi Science & Technology Group, which will hold 49% of shares.^[6] The Government of Pakistan will purchase electricity from the consortium at a tariff of 8.3601 US Cents/kWh.^[7]

Project Details

The project site spans a total of 690 hectares (1,700 acres).^[8] The project will consist not only of the power plants themselves, but also will include the construction of a railway from the village of Yusuf Wala to the site for exclusive use of the plant.^[9]

The plants will each consist of one boiler, steam turbine and generator, and will be fueled by sub-bituminous coal which will be offloaded at the project's purpose-built rail terminus.^[10] The plants will be able to generate a total of 1,320 megawatts of electricity, with a gross efficiency of 42.11% ^[11] by the use of a supercritical steam generator operating at temperatures of up to 580 degrees Celsius.^[12]

The plant will include an air quality monitoring stations, and an electrostatic precipitator in order to reduce ash and sulfur emissions from the plant.^[13] It will require 60,000 cubic meters of water daily for operation, with water being drawn from the Lower Bari Doab Canal.^[14] Raw materials for the plant, including cement, sand, wood, and other buildings materials are being sourced from Pakistan, while furniture from the plants is being procured specifically from markets in nearby Sahiwal.^[15]

Construction

While symbolic ground breaking for the project took place in May 2014,^[16] commencement of actual civil works began on February 6, 2015.^[17] The first of the two 660MW plants is expected to be put into operation on December 31, 2017, while the second 660MW plant will be put into operation on June 30, 2018.^[18] An estimated 350 personnel will be required to operate the plant,^[19] including 200 Pakistani engineers who are to undergo training in China.^[20] Approximately 3000 laborers are required for construction of the plant.^[21]

Boiler foundations, and the plant's turbine steel structure have been completed, while the 9-storey tall boiler structure, chimneys, and cooling towers are under construction as of May 2016.^[22] In order to transport coal, a purpose built railway line will be built from the Pakistan Railway at Yusuf Wala to the power plant itself.^[23] From there, the coal will be transported via the purpose built railway line. In order to assist in coal transportation, Pakistan Railways has signed a $214 million contract for the purchase of 55 diesel electric locomotives from General Electric.^[24] Pakistan Railways will also procure a further 20 diesel electric locomotives specifically for coal transport.^[25] In January 2016, the Pakistan Railways signed a $37 million contract with Jinan Railway Vehicles Equipment Company for the supply of 800 hopper wagons which will be used to transport coal to the Sahiwal Coal Power Plant;^[26] 580 of these wagons are to be constructed at the Mughalpura railway workshop.^[27]

In order to connect the plant to the national electrical grid, a 9.5 kilometer 500 kilovolt single circuit transmission line will be constructed from the site to the Sahiwal Substation.^[28]

Coal Source

As with the Pakistan Port Qasim Power Project, most of the coal used for the power plant will be imported from Indonesia and South Africa, and will be transported by rail from the Port of Karachi and Port Qasim in Pakistan's Sindh Province to the nearby village of Yusuf Wala on Pakistan's existing railway infrastructure.^[29]

An estimated 4.48 million tons of coal will be required annually for the plant, based on a calculation of 22 hours of power generation per day.^[30] Indonesia is identified as a primary source for its high quality coal, reliable production, and short transit times to Pakistan.^[31] Coal from Pakistan's own Thar coalfield was found to contain excessive amounts of sulfur and lime, and was not deemed to be of high enough quality for the project.^[32] The supply of reliable coal from the fields was also considered to be inadequate.^[32] A mixture of Pakistani indigenous coal with imported coal was also deemed to be unsuitable as it would decrease heat production from coal, and would compromise safety of the boilers which are to be used in the project.^[32]

Financing and Tariff

The project is expected to cost a total of $1.8 billion.^[33] Of this, the Chinese consortium will bear 20% of the cost ($356.4 million) while the remainining 80% ($1.4256 billion) will be financed by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.^[34]

The Government of Pakistan will purchase electricity from the plant at a tariff of 8.3601 US Cents/kWh.^[7]

References