ISLAMABAD: Only two projects at a cost of $137 million under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) have been completed so far out of 17 early harvest proposed projects at a total estimated cost of $18 billion.

According to the information shared with the National Assembly last week, the two CPEC projects that have been completed are Quaid-e-Azam 100 megawatts Solar Park at a cost of $137 million and Digital Terrestrial Multiband Broadcast at a cost of $2 million.

Ten of the remaining 15 projects that are under implementation include: (i) 10 energy projects at a total cost of $11.186 billion to generate around 4,460 megawatts electricity by 2018; (ii) two relating to transport infrastructure at a cost of $6.1 billion, (iii) two relating to Gwadar Port at a cost of $0.3706 billon and (iv) one Cross Border Optical Fiber Cable at an estimated cost of $0.044 billion.

Tentative completion deadline of two separate coal-fired projects is as follows: (i) 660 megawatts of Port Qasim Electric Company Sindh at a projected cost of $1,980 million is scheduled for completion in 2017/2018; and Sahiwal Coal-Fired Power Plant with a generation capacity of 1,320 megawatts at a cost of $1,600 million will be completed in June 2017.

Four Engro Thar projects with a total generation capacity of 1320 megawatts (330 MW each) at a cost of $2 billion will be completed by 2018; surface mine in block-II of Thar coal field, 6.5mtpa, at a projected cost of $1,470 million is scheduled for completion in 2018; Dawood 50 megawatts wind farm, Bhambore, Sindh at an estimated cost of $125 million is to be completed by November 2016; UEP 100 megawatts wind farm, Jhimpir, Sindh, at a cost of $250 million will be completed by September 2017; Sachal 50 megawatts wind farm, Jhimpir, Sindh, at a projected cost of $134 million will be completed by July 2017; Suki Kinari Hydropower Station in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at an estimated cost of $1,802 million is scheduled for completion in 2021/2022; and Karo Hydropower Station, Azad Jammu Kashmir and Punjab at a cost of $1,420 will be completed in 2020/2021.

Two other projects under the CPEC-Transport Infrastructure Projects worth $6.1 billion are in the implementation stage. Karakorum Highway Phase-II (Raikot-Islamabad Section) worth $3,500 million will be completed in 2017/2018 and Peshawar-Karachi Motorway (Multan-Sukkur Section) worth $2,600 million will be completed in 2018.

Two projects under the CPEC-Gwadar Port worth $0.3706 billion are also in the implementation stage and are scheduled to be completed in 2018. Eastbay Expressway with a cost of $0.1406 billion and Gwadar International Airport with a cost of $0.230 billion would be completed in 2018.

Another project namely Cross Border Optical Fiber Cable with a cost of $0.044 billion will be completed in 2017/2018.

China and Pakistan signed a $46 billion investment and infrastructure development programme in April 2015 during the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Islamabad.