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Explore career opportunitiesFunded by World Bank, and commissioned by Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation, the project will address the region’s rising electricity demands by developing and implementing hydropower plant concepts in Gabral-Kalam, and in Madyan.
Power shortages are commonplace in the north western region of Pakistan. With electricity supply limited to 6 hours a day in some districts, the shortfall is further exacerbated by low voltages which strain residents’ ability to draw water.
With a capacity of 88 MW, once complete and operational, the Gabral-Kalam Hydropower Project will generate an average of 339 GWh of energy per year. Its powerhouse site is close to Kalam town, and its proposed weir site is located on Gabral River (a tributary of Swat River near the Kanai village) in the Swat district.
Located about 50 kilometres downstream of Gabral-Kalam, and set to generate 767.5 GWh of energy per year, the 157 MW Madyan Hydropower Plant is also in the Swat district, with its weir and powerhouse located just north of Madyan town.
As project implementation consultants, SMEC will lead the joint venture partners to deploy multidisciplinary experts to review the proposed designs for both developments, supervise construction, and deliver training to build capacity among the local stakeholders who will operate and maintain the infrastructure when it is built.
For the Gabral-Kalam Project, our scope of works includes reviewing the proposed design and feasibility study and for the Madyan Project, we will carry out detailed engineering design. Providing technical assistance to the client’s staff, SMEC will also prepare bidding documents, carry out the bidding process and supervise construction for both projects.
“Together, these crucial hydropower projects will inject 1,106.5 GWh of energy into the national grid annually,” said Aijaz Ahmed, SMEC’s General Manager Hydropower Operations.
“We are proud to harness our expertise in hydropower, and our significant experiences working with multilateral bank-funded initiatives to generate cost effective and sustainable energy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with enduring economic benefits.”
Photo from the signing ceremony in Pakistan. Left to right: SMEC’s Principal Engineer, Muhammad Nasir and General Manager of Hydropower Operations, Aijaz Ahmed Pitafi, with Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation’s Director of Procurement & Contracts, Faisal Qaseem (our client) and Temelsu’s representative Nasiruddin, along with Chief Engineer/ Head PMO, Sayed Shah Hussain from our client’s office, SMEC’s Country Manager, Muhammad Jamil, and our clients, Director of Business Planning & Analysis, Faraz Khan and Director of the Madyan Project, Mustafa Kamal Khan.
The proposed weir site for the Madyan Hydropower Plant development project.
In March, members from SMEC South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal office teamed up with the PEACE (Personality Exploration and Career Exploration) Programme, a career guidance initiative aimed at guiding students through their high school journey. The programme, provided at no cost, aims to educate students on various career paths and equip them to make informed educational or vocational decisions.
In a recent infrastructure-focused gathering held in Jakarta Indonesia, Karen Atkinson, SMEC Executive Director Dams & Hydropower, led discussions in a workshop focusing on empowering women in leadership roles and integrating gender perspectives into infrastructure development.
SMEC’s technical specialists are presenting technical papers at this year’s Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2023 in Auckland, New Zealand.
Specialists from SMEC’s Power and Energy team will deliver presentations at the 2023 All-Energy Conference in Melbourne. The annual conference is delivered in collaboration with the Clean Energy Council and grants attendees access to the most recent technology, information, and trends pertinent to professionals in the renewable energy sector.
