Siemens and Chinese engineering company Harbin Electric International have signed a deal with Pakistan utility K-Electric to build a $650m, 900 MW combined cycle power plant in Karachi.
 
The plant will be located at the Bin Qasim Power and will be known as Bin Qasim Power Station 3 (BQPS-III). Work is expected to start by the end of the year and is due to be completed in 24 months.
 
Siemens will provide two of its SGT5-4000F gas turbines, steam turbines, generators and condensers and the turbines will be the first from Siemens to be added to K-Electric’s power generation fleet. The plant is intended to bridge the shortfall in the power network that serves 15 million people in Karachi, which is Pakistan’s biggest city.
 
K-Electric chief executive Moonis Alvi said the plant “is essential in meeting Karachi’s future energy demands. The aim is to commission the project in the fastest possible time, and we are confident that with the right facilitation from all quarters, power from the plant may be added to our supply as soon as summer of 2021.”
 
Karim Amin, chief executive of Power Generation at Siemens Gas and Power, said: “There is no doubt that adding 900 MW of reliable power generation capacity to the city of Karachi is a great source of pride, however we are even more proud of the partnership with K-Electric and Harbin Electric and the determination to make this project a successful landmark for the people of Pakistan.”
 
The latest trends and technologies in gas turbine flexibility and O&M will be highlighted at POWERGEN Europe in Paris in November by gas turbine experts from a host of companies, including MHPS, Ansaldo Energia and Uniper.