China Comes to Aid of Pakistan Power Crisis

China is to help Pakistan build four new nuclear power plants to meet growing energy demands, writes India's Economic Times.

Islamabad's request for more Chinese nuclear power reactors aims to bridge the widening gap between the demand and supply of energy, a senior Pakistani official was quoted as saying.

China is expected to help Pakistan establish at least four nuclear power plants of nearly 1,300MW, two of which are planned at Chashma and Karachi, writes the newspaper.

India's President Pervez Musharraf is believed to have made the formal request to China's Government on a recent trip to the country.

While the power plants will ensure supply in the future, Pakistan’s current energy problems came to the fore yesterday when more than 3,000 textile workers gathered in Multan, south of Islamabad, to protest against prolonged power cuts that have closed down several production units and left hundreds of workers unemployed.

Pakistan is currently facing a power shortage of 4,000MW with homes and businesses being subjected to electricity cuts.

By staff writer