Following the successful conclusion of all commissioning works and performance-related tests, National Power Parks Management Company Limited (NPPMCL), Harbin Electric International Company Limited (HEI) and GE (NYSE: GE) have announced completion of the Balloki power plant.
According to NPPMCL Manager (Corporate Communications) Hassan Ali, the company’s Chief Executive Officer Rashid Mahmood had announced that Balloki project was now able to supply up to 1,223 megawatts (MW) of uninterrupted power to the national grid, the equivalent electricity needed to supply up to 2.5 million Pakistani homes.
The CEO mentioned that this was the second re-gasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) power project developed by NPPMCL, the first being the Haveli Bahadur Shah (HBS) power plant, which entered full-fledged combined cycle commercial operations in May 2018. Together, the HBS and Balloki plants had already added over 5.5 billion kilowatt hours of power to the national grid while in the commissioning phase and these would continue to deliver efficient, low-cost power for up to 30 years, making a meaningful difference in the lives of the people of Pakistan, he maintained.
The CEO explained that contract to set up the plant was awarded by NPPMCL to HEI, which was the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the project and responsible for its installation works and commissioning schedule. The HEI sub-contracted GE to supply two of its HA gas turbines, some auxiliary equipment and technical advisory services. The plant had earlier realized an impressive milestone by synchronizing an HA unit to the grid just 74 days after it was delivered to the project site, the shortest duration in which GE’s HA technology had achieved this milestone anywhere in the world.
While, Chief Operation Officer and General Director of 1st Power Division of HEI, Li Chao opined, “The successful completion of Balloki power plant underlines the strong collaboration among NPPMCL, HEI and GE in driving the commissioning of the project.” People from more than 25 countries came together to work on this project. Together, we brought the world’s best to power Pakistan, local project management with Chinese engineering expertise and power generation technologies that were developed by advanced research and development teams based in North America and Europe. The Balloki project marked the 24th and 25th orders for GE’s HA gas turbine globally and with its completion, we are proud that the third GE HA-equipped power plant in Pakistan is ready to add much-needed electricity to the national grid”, said Mohammad Ali, President and CEO of GE’s Gas Power Systems, Projects business in the Middle East, Pakistan and India.
President and CEO of GE Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan Sarim Sheikh said that GE was committed to bringing advanced technologies to Pakistan that assured the highest levels of productivity and efficiency, asserting that for over half a century now, GE had led the transformation of the power sector in Pakistan and the successful start of commercial operations at Bhikki, Haveli Bahadur Shah and now Balloki, bringing a total of 3,600-MW to the national grid, was another example of their work to deliver the world’s leading energy solutions to the country.
