Pak-China hydropower coop injecting energy into Pak green development
China-Pakistan small hydro power cooperation is injecting energy into Pakistan’s green economic development, said Wang Chunping, chairperson of Hero boss Technology Group, in an interview with China Economic Net (CEN).
He said, the development of small scale hydro power can not only solve the problem of electricity consumption of local residents, but also help in developing small local industries, increasing local taxes after being incorporated into the national power grid, and regulating the local ecological climate.
Wang Chunping said that Hero boss Technology is mainly engaged in scientific and technological cooperation with the Pakistani Ministry of Science and Technology and local energy institutes.
It is responsible for setting up the S&T cooperation platform between the two countries in the China-Pakistan small hydro power joint research center, connecting the joint discussions of Chinese state-owned enterprises in Pakistan, and promoting the integrated S&T development.
The China-Pakistan small-scale Hydro power Technology Joint Research Center is one of the first batch of joint laboratories under the “Belt and Road Initiative.”
Since the implementation of the China-Pakistan “Belt and Road” joint laboratory on small hydro power technology in early 2021, 5 meetings have been held and consensus has been reached on small hydro power development.
The energy exhibition hall has been completed and 80 percent of the equipment donated by China has arrived. It has also completed studies for the development of several small hydro power projects, and assisted in the compilation of relevant regulations for small hydro power projects in Pakistan.
Tan Bixuan, Project Manager of CGGC DASU Hydro power Project in Pakistan, consultant of the research center emphasized that the center is willing to carry out all technology transfer within the scope of national permits, so as to enable the iron brother to develop faster and better.
He explained that “recently, we conducted a joint discussion with major enterprises involved in BRI on how to give full play to achieve more technological transformation.”
In Pakistan, hydro power projects under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor are in full swing. According to Wang, small hydro power development is more conducive to the economic development of poor mountainous areas than large-scale hydro power projects.
60% of rivers in Pakistan are tributaries with a partial annual water flow of 50 m3/s, a large height difference, and a kilometer-long length, allowing for multi-stage small hydro power development in natural conditions.
Pakistan is one of the countries hardest hit by climate change. Since mid-June 2022, multiple rounds of rainstorms have hit various provinces of Pakistan, causing severe flooding. Tan believes that S&T should be used to support Pakistan’s post-disaster reconstruction and fight climate change.
“For post-disaster reconstruction, we are actively studying and cooperating on mobile solar power houses, mobile energy storage systems and mobile communications.
And there is a lot of room for cooperation between China and Pakistan in the field of renewable energy, including hydro power, such as small hydro power development in the northern mountains, urban waste power generation, solar power generation, hydrogen energy, air storage, etc,” added Tan.