NTDC connects 660MW Thar Plant with grid

LAHORE (Staff Reporter): National Transmission and Despatch Company Ltd (NTDC) has completed the construction work of 282 km long 500 kV Double Circuit Quad Bundle transmission line from Engro power plant to Jamshoro in Sindh province. The transmission line was tested and energized successfully on 31 July 2018. While dilating upon the details the NTDC Spokesman said that the transmission line will evacuate 660 MW power from Engro Thar Coal Power Plant situated at Tharparkar. He said that it is a truly a historic event as Thar i.e an energy future of Pakistan has been connected with national grid. Power generated from the plants in Thar will be provided to far flung areas of Sindh through national grid. Managing Director, Dy Managing Director (Asset Development & Management) NTDC has appreciated the NTDC engineers, staff, consultants and contractors for their untiring efforts to complete this vital project.

Classified directory of trade, industry launched

LAHORE (Staff Reporter): The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry Wednesday launched "LCCI Classified Directory of Trade and Industry" which has vast range of business data. The LCCI President Malik Tahir Javaid launched the "LCCI Classified Directory of Trade and Industry" along with Senior Vice President Khawaja Khawar Rasheed and Vice President Zeshan Khalil. The directory has the data of 3837 manufacturers, 3889 exporters, 6860 importers, 3245 traders, 44 indenting agents and 5282 from services sector. The directory has 72 leading business sectors which have been divided into 473 sub categories. The directory will prove an essential reference for every firm having business interests. The LCCI President Malik Tahir Javaid said that the directory has been designed to help business entrepreneurs to know about the businesses. This new directory will enable the businessmen community to be more involved with the economic development activities.

Malik Tahir said that Pakistan is a developing economy with abundant potential to attain faster industrial growth.

Millers hope revival of industries

FAISALABAD (Staff Reporter): All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA), have felicitated to Imran Khan, chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on his party's overwhelming victory in the general election 2018. In a press release issued by APTPMA Head Office, Faisalabad, Saleem Parekh, chairman, M Zubair Motiwala, patron-in-chief, office bearers and former chairmen hoped that under Imran's leadership, the country will progress and prosper and the wheel of industry, which was slowed down, will accelerate by taking the due steps to revive the process of industrialisation.  They hoped that Imran would fulfill all his commitments made to the business community of Karachi, Faisalabad and Lahore and particularly his pledge towards improving the infrastructure of Karachi and resolving the issues being faced by the business and industrial community of this city which continues to contribute a mammoth share of more than 50 per cent revenue to the national exchequer despite all odds.

Zubair Motiwala said that upon assuming charge of the country's state of affairs, Imran would prioritize some of the urgent economic issues being faced by the country and pay special attention to the problems being suffered by the business and industrial community of Karachi, Faisalabad and Lahore since long.

They extend all the support in putting the country on the path of prosperity and stability. They also pray to Almighty Allah for his success in the new challenging responsibilities entrusted.

Cotton committee to meet next week

ISLAMABAD (APP): Cotton Crop Assessment Committee (CCAC) would meet in the second week of current month (August) in order to take stock of the output of major cash crop of the county during current season. Restructuring of the committee has also been completed after the devolution of CCAC from the Ministry of Commerce to Ministry of National Food Security and Research, said Cotton Commissioner in the Ministry of National Food Security and Research Dr Khalid Abdullah. Talking to APP here on Wednesday, he said that formulation of new committee had been finalized and all the relevant stakeholders were taken on board in order to sensitize the issues and challenges being faced by the cotton growers across the crop sowing areas of the country. He said that representation of all four provinces, federal government and allied departments working under the respective governments of had also be aligned for streamlining the matters related to enhance the output of the crop by facilitating the farmers and field extension departments.

Meanwhile, giving the over view of crop during current season, the Commissioner said that the cotton crop was in good shape and stability in prices in the domestic markets had enhance the interest in the crop and encouraged the farmers to put more land under cotton cultivation.

Besides, he informed that the federal government has imposed import duty on cotton, which would also help in price stabilization in the local markets.

"The cotton had been cultivated over 2.69 million hectares of land to produce 14 million cotton bales fixed during the current sowing season to fulfill the domestic requirements as well as for exporting, adding that crop sowing had registered about 1 percent increase across the crop producing areas of the country as compared the cultivation of corresponding period of last season," he remarked.

The cotton sowing targets were fixed at 2.95 million hectares in order to produce over 14 million cotton bales during the crop season 2018-19 in order to fulfill the domestic requirements as well as for exporting.

He informed that the crop cultivation targets, which fixed for the current sowing season were achieved by over  91 percent as it went up by 1.0  percent as compared with the area under cotton crop cultivation during same period of last year.

He said that overall cotton sowing in the Province of Punjab registered about 11 percent growth as it had cultivated the crop over 2.29 million hectares of land as against the set targets of 2.31 million hectares for the period under review.

However, he informed that crop sowing in the Sindh Province was decreased by 40 percent and attributed the low sowing trend with dry weather during the crop sowing time as well as shortage of water for crop irrigation.

The province, he said could achieve the sowing targets by 66 percent and cultivated the crop over 0.41 million hectares as against the targets of 0.62 million hectares fixed for current sowing season.

Meanwhile, he said that Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces were assigned a task to cultivated the crop over 0.1 million hectares.

Dr Abdullah said that due to recent rains the water availability for crop irrigation would strengthened, which would help in further boosting the area under cotton growing as well as enhance the output.

Meanwhile, the exports of raw cotton from the country during l2 months of last financial year ended on June 30, 2018 had registered over 33.65 percent growth as compared the exports of the corresponding period of last year as about 35,347 metric tons of the above mentioned commodity wroth US$ 58.227 million exported, which stood at 25,462 metric tons valuing US$ 43.567 million of same period last year.

During the period under review, about 521,959 metric tons of cotton yarn worth US$ 1.371 billion was also exported as compared the 458,074 metric tons valuing US$ 1.243 billion of the same period last year,  according the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.

During the period from July-June, 2017-18, the exports of the cotton yarn  grew by 10.30 percent as compared the corresponding period of last year, where as the exports of yarn other than the  cotton yarn grew by 38.85 percent, it added.

About 11,690 metric tons of yarn other than cotton yarn worth US$ 33.411 million exported as against the 2,519 metric tons valuing US$ 24.063 million of same period of last year, it added.