WAPDA organises Road Show in Bangkok to woo contracting firms

ISLAMABAD, Jan 29 (APP):WAPDA organized a day-long Road Show in Bangkok on Monday for the 300 MW-Floating Solar Project, the first of its kind in Pakistan.
The aim of the Road Show was to foster enhanced competition among prospective bidders for the project, according to a news release received here.

As many as 58 delegates from 50 international firms participated in the event. Among the attendees were Chairman WAPDA Engr Lt Gen Sajjad Ghani (Retd), Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires in Thailand Yasir Hussain, World Bank representatives, WAPDA high-ups, and the project’s consultants.
Expressing gratitude for the active participation, the Chairman highlighted the excellent business opportunities for contracting firms in the WAPDA floating solar project.
He emphasized the transparent international competitive bidding process and WAPDA’s strong asset base and professional expertise in implementing mega projects in the water and power sectors.
The Chairman expressed hope that contracting firms from around the world would bid for the project in large numbers, considering the highly secured and easily accessible project site.

Later in the event, WAPDA Member Finance, Member Power, GM (Coordination and Monitoring), and the consultants briefed the participants on WAPDA, its revenue streams, collaboration with international financial institutes, and development portfolio.
They also discussed financial, technical, and bidding details of the 300 MW-Floating Solar Project in Pakistan. The Chairman, along with the WAPDA team and consultants, responded to queries during the question-answer session.
Before the Bangkok Road Show, WAPDA organized a Pre-Bid Conference in Pakistan in November last year.
WAPDA’s 300 MW-Floating Solar Project aims to generate clean energy from Tarbela-Ghazi Barotha Complex through the development of an environmentally friendly, innovative floating solar and hydropower hybrid system.
The project involves deploying two 150 MW floating solar plants, one at Ghazi Head Pond at Tarbela Complex and the other at North Pond at Ghazi-Barotha Complex.
These plants will be connected with the Switch Yards of Tarbela and Ghazi-Barotha Hydel Power Stations to provide 484 million units of low-cost electricity to the National Grid annually.
The World Bank has expressed interest in providing 95% financing for the project. WAPDA has already released bidding documents in October 2023 in accordance with the World Bank’s procurement guidelines, with the bidding submission deadline set for March 12, 2024.