Daily Times

LAHORE: The construction of Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project (NJHP) would be completed in shortest possible time, as the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) construction team has successfully completed the excavation of left tunnel, one of the critical components of the project, on schedule.

The project management achieved this milestone on Sunday when it successfully connected two portions of the left tunnel. During the mining operation, one of the two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) broke through the left tunnel from the downstream side, joining it with the portion that had already been excavated through the traditional drilling and blasting method from the upstream side.

With this development, the left tunnel system from dam to the powerhouse was excavated. The right tunnel system was scheduled to be excavated by April, 2017. Thereafter, the waterway system would enter its final phase of completion. Once this is done, the project would be ready for pressurising the tunnel system, culminating into wet testing i.e. electricity generation from the project, which is expected in early 2018.

In order to celebrate this landmark achievement, the NJHP management arranged a simple ceremony at the breakthrough site, wherein WAPDA Chairman Lt Gen (r) Muzammil Hussain performed the ceremony of connecting the two sections of the left tunnel. The NJHP chief executive officer and project director were also present on the occasion.

While congratulating the project management, consultants and contractors on completing excavation of the left tunnel, the chairman said that Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project was an important project to overcome electricity shortages in the country. He expressed hope that with commitment and concerted efforts of the present WAPDA management, this project would be completed in the shortest possible time.

The WAPDA chairman thanked the federal government for its support in construction of the project. He said that in order to complete the remaining work on time, targets have been set by rationalising the timelines, while an effective mechanism was also now in place to closely monitor the progress on the project. It is pertinent to mention that for generating electricity from the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project and its injection to the national grid, a 525-KV transmission line was being constructed by the National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC), which would join the national grid at Domeli in district Jhelum through a 145-kilometrelong double circuit line. This transmission line would be completed before the project goes into operation.