In order to begin work on the Dasu Hydropower Project, the mighty Indus River was successfully diverted to one of the two temporary water-flowing tunnels.
According to the official statement released by Water and Power Development Authority, the river is currently flowing through a 1.33-kilometer-long diversion that is 20 metres wide and 23 metres tall rather than following its natural course.
After the diversion, work on the starter dam, which will lead to the development of the primary Dasu Hydropower project, has begun.
The project team has received congratulations from WAPDA Chairman Engineer Lt Gen (retd) Sajjad Ghani for reaching this significant milestone.
The Indus River diversion was witnessed by the project director for the Dasu Hydropower Project, officials from the consultants and contractors, and a number of engineers and labourers.
Two tunnels, tunnel A and tunnel B, make up the Dasu Hydropower Project’s diversion system. The press release noted that of them, tunnel B is complete and has the discharge capacity necessary to divert the water of the Indus River during the present lean-flows season.
The 1.5 km long, 20 m wide, and 23 m high Tunnel A will also be finished by mid-April of this year in order to accommodate the greater water flows throughout the high-flows season.
The Dasu Hydropower Project is an essential part of WAPDA’s strategy for producing clean, green, and affordable energy. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Upper Kohistan area, upstream of Dasu Town, the project is being built over the Indus River (KP).
The 4,320 MW power project would be finished in two phases, according to the proposal. WAPDA is currently building stage-I, which will have an installed generation capacity of 2,160 MW and produce 12 billion units of electricity annually.
