100MW solar project planned to ease Gilgit-Baltistan power supply
Energy Update reports the scheme is meant to improve supply reliability, but its location, cost, timeline and executing agency were not disclosed.
A 100-megawatt solar power project is planned in Gilgit-Baltistan to improve the reliability of electricity supply to the region, according to a report by Energy Update, the energy publication that carried the item.
The report gave no further detail. It did not identify where the plant would be built, what it would cost, which agency would execute it, when it would be completed, or how it would be financed. It carried no statement from the Gilgit-Baltistan government, the region's power department, the Water and Power Development Authority or any federal ministry. Skardu Times could not independently confirm the project's status.
Gilgit-Baltistan's grid draws most of its electricity from hydropower stations on the Indus and its tributaries, supplemented by diesel generation and small local schemes in districts that the main transmission network does not reach. Output from the hydel stations drops in winter as river flows fall, at the same time as demand for heating rises, and feeders across the region face long outages in the coldest months.
A solar plant would add capacity mainly in daylight hours. It would not, on its own, cover the evening peak, when the gap between demand and supply in Gilgit-Baltistan is widest.
Energy Update framed the project as a boost to reliable electricity supply in the region. Whether the scheme has moved beyond planning, and whether it is a federal or a regional initiative, is not clear from the report.
The announcement follows years of complaints from households and businesses in Gilgit-Baltistan over load-shedding, particularly in winter, and over the cost of running diesel generators and inverters where the grid is unreliable. Industry in the region, including the small manufacturing and tourism-related businesses that depend on steady power, has cited supply as a constraint.
No official announcement of the project, and no confirmation of how much capacity it would add to the regional grid or when, was available from public sources at the time of filing. This story will be updated when the Gilgit-Baltistan government, the power department or the executing agency confirms the details.
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