PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi on Saturday inaugurated the 40.8MW Koto hydropower project in Lower Dir, marking a major milestone in the province’s clean energy development.
Built at a cost of Rs 21.7 billion, the project is expected to generate 207 million units of electricity annually and earn around Rs 2.4 billion in yearly revenue. The chief minister also opened the 18.5km Tormang–Razgram Road, completed at a cost of Rs 1.5 billion.
Speaking at the ceremony, Afridi said the provincial government is pursuing a long-term strategy to harness hydropower as a key driver of economic growth. Clean and green energy projects, he noted, will support industrial expansion and create much-needed employment opportunities.
He revealed that KP’s first-ever 120km power transmission line is in the pipeline, which will enable electricity generated at 11 local hydropower stations to be supplied to industries at concessional rates—an essential step toward boosting industrialisation and reducing unemployment.
Afridi said the provincial government is fully committed to building its own power distribution system, stressing that “the people of this province have the first right over its natural resources.”
The chief minister expressed concern over delays in the issuance of NOCs for foreign engineers working on development projects, saying such bureaucratic hurdles slow down progress and cause losses to both the province and the country.
Speaking about former prime minister Imran Khan, Afridi said Khan always had a genuine concern for the people and launched long-term, welfare-oriented development projects “without worrying about who would inaugurate them later.”
He reiterated that the federal government still owes Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rs 3 trillion in unpaid dues, which are crucial for the province’s development.
PTI provincial president Junaid Akbar and elected representatives from Lower Dir were also present at the ceremony.
