969MW Neelum-Jhelum project in trouble, again
The 969-megawatt Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project (NJHP), completed at an estimated approved cost of more than Rs510 billion, has been partially closed once again within days of its full capacity utilisation after almost 20-month-long repair works. The project was closed in July 2022 due to major cracks in its 3.5km tailrace tunnel (TRT), which was repaired over the next 13 months. Power generation started again in August-September 2023, attaining its maximum 969MW capacity on March 29, as announced by the Water & Power Development Authority (Wapda). Within a week, on April 3, the 48km-long headrace tunnel (HRT) dropped pressure, and power generation fell to about 400MW “soon after the project was restored to full capacity by international contractors because of debris or cracks in HRT”, inside sources told Dawn.