Govt committed to resolving power crisis in GB and Gwadar: minister
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He emphasised that the Prime Minister had directed that energy projects critical to GB’s requirements be treated as high priority and executed within the stipulated timelines.
ISLAMABAD (APP) - Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal on Thursday chaired the third high-level meeting of the PM Committee constituted to devise a permanent solution to recurring water and power outages in Gwadar district, and reviewed progress on ongoing and planned power projects in both Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Gwadar.
Speaking at the meeting, Ahsan Iqbal said the government was committed to resolving the chronic electricity shortages affecting communities in GB and Gwadar, noting that uninterrupted power supply was vital for economic activity, service delivery, and long-term development in these regions.
He emphasised that the Prime Minister had directed that energy projects critical to GB’s requirements be treated as high priority and executed within the stipulated timelines.
“The people of Gilgit-Baltistan must be provided adequate and reliable electricity, and we are taking all necessary steps to ensure this,” he said.
An action plan for the accelerated implementation of energy projects in Gilgit-Baltistan had been approved in line with the Prime Minister’s directives. Under this plan, GB is expected to be supplied with a 100 MW addition to its power generation capacity by June 2026.
The 100 MWp Distributed Photovoltaic (DPV) Solar Project is currently under development at multiple sites across Gilgit-Baltistan. The project comprises an 18 MW rooftop solar component and an 82 MW utility-scale component, with an estimated total cost of Rs 24 billion.
The Planning Minister reiterated that timely deployment of the solarisation programme was essential for enhancing energy access and reducing dependence on costly and environmentally unsustainable generation options.
He directed the departments concerned to ensure that budgetary allocations required for initiating the GB solarisation works were secured without delay.
Turning to Gwadar, the committee reviewed the status of the Solarisation of Pumping Stations and Desalination Power Plants, an initiative valued at Rs 1.9 billion.
The project aims to reduce operating costs and improve efficiency of the port city’s water supply infrastructure.
