Pakistan said on Monday that it has signed an MoU with Iran to provide 100 megawatts of electricity to Gwadar.
From March 10 to 13, Energy Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan visited Iran for three days and met with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akber Mehrabian.
According to the energy ministry, both ministers stressed the need of fostering cooperation and expressed interest in starting new joint ventures in the energy sector during a series of talks.
Mr. Khurram traveled to Tehran to complete a deal for the delivery of electricity to Gwadar, which he had started during a previous trip in June 2022. The transmission line for power from Iran to Gwadar was built in a record-breaking nine months. Technical teams had three sessions “for the finalization of agreement of power supply” during which time there was substantial discussion. These meetings led to the signing of a contract with Iran for the delivery of 100MW to Gwadar.
The timeframe for power supply and tariff concerns are still being discussed, according to representatives from the energy ministry and Pakistan’s embassy in Tehran, and will be decided upon with the approval of the federal cabinet. The project, according to the statement, would assure continuous supply to Gwadar and would be launched as soon as possible.
The minister also took part in an event honoring the approaching Pakistan Day, during which he stated that Pakistan and Iran were two sister countries united by their shared history, culture, and religious convictions.
The Saudi and Iranian governments’ leaders were congratulated by the energy minister on the restoration of their diplomatic relations. According to Iranian Energy Minister Ali Akber Mehrabian, there is a lot of room to grow bilateral ties.
Pakistan’s state-run National Transmission & Despatch Company (NTDC) has already completed and tested a 29km long double-circuit transmission line from Polan, Iran to Gwadar to ensure the supply of an additional 100MW to various parts of Balochistan. Gwadar port has been facing an electricity shortage, hampering industrial growth. A 51-km transmission line from the Polan grid station to the Pak-Iran border is also ready.
