The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $250m loan to expand and improve the power transmission network in Pakistan’s Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.

ADB’s power transmission strengthening project will help stabilise the national grid by increasing its transmission capacity.

The high-voltage transmission network will be expanded to close 500kV and 220kV transmission line loops. Transmission losses in the city of Lahore, Punjab, will also be reduced by replacing old transmission lines.

The aim of the project is to reduce the gap between demand and supply and achieve environmental stability and climate resilience in the power sector by increasing indigenous sources to more than 50%.

This project will also complement ADB’s support of the state-owned National Transmission & Despatch Company (NTDC) to deliver clean and cost-effective energy.

ADB Central and West Asia director-general Yevgeniy Zhukov stated: “Reliable power supply is essential to inclusive, sustainable economic growth, and it will also provide economic opportunities to rural communities.

“We are pleased to continue supporting Pakistan in its efforts to achieve energy security while improving energy efficiency.”

ADB will also support the project and financial management of NTDC and its capacity to include climate resilience in its planning and operation.

In June 2023, ADB approved a loan of Rs98bn ($214m) to Samruk Energy’s subsidiary, Almaty Electric Stations, to upgrade a coal-fired combined heat and power plant (CHP) in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Proceeds from the loan will be used to upgrade Almaty Electric Stations' CHP Plant 2 with combined cycle gas turbine units.

The fuel efficiency of the power plant will increase by more than 20% while its carbon emissions will be lowered.