Port Qasim

From Global Energy Monitor

Port Qasim (Urdu: بندر گاہ محمد بن قاسم Bandara gāh muham'mad ban qāsim), also known as Port Muhammad Bin Qasim, is a seaport in Karachi, Pakistan, on the coastline of the Arabian Sea. It is one of Pakistan's busiest ports.

Port Qasim includes the following coal infrastructure:


It is different from the Karachi Port, which is located approximately 58 kilometers (38 miles) west of Port Qasim.

Location

Port Qasim is adjacent to Bin Qasim town, in the southern part of Malir district, Karachi division, in Sindh. It is located in an old channel of the Indus River at a distance of 35 kilometers east of Karachi city center.

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Background

Port Qasim and Karachi Port, the busiest port of the country, together handle more than 90% of all external trade of Pakistan.

The port encompasses a total area of 12,000 acres (49 km2) wherein many industrial zones operate. In addition to the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) and Bin Qasim power station (natural gas and fuel oil power plant), around 80% of the Pakistan's automotive industry is located at Port Qasim. The port also provides direct waterfront access to two major nearby industrial areas, Export Processing Zone (Landhi) and Korangi Industrial Area. Approximately 60% of country's export and import is originated from these areas. Port Qasim is managed by Port Qasim Authority, a semi-autonomous government body.

The major cargo groups include iron ore, edible oils, containers, coal, rice, jute, and grain.[1][2]

Iron Ore and Coal Berth (IOCB)

The Port Qasim Iron Ore and Coal Berth (IOCB) was commissioned in 1980. It has a specialized berth for handling iron ore, coal, and manganese for Pakistan Steel Mills exclusively. The design capacity of the berth stands at 3.03 million tonnes per annum.[3]

Project Details

  • Operator: Port Qasim Authority
  • Location: Port Qasim, Pakistan
  • Existing Coal Capacity (Million tonnes per annum): 3.03 (coal, iron ore, and manganese for Pakistan steel mills)
  • Status: Operating
  • Projected In Service:
  • Type: Imports
  • Source of Coal:

Pakistan International Bulk Terminal (PIBT)

For additional information on the Pakistan International Bulk Terminal (PIBT), visit the related wiki.

PIBT was Pakistan's first terminal for handling coal, clinker, and cement at Port Qasim. The company signed a Build Operate Transfer (BOT) contract with Port Qasim Authority in November 2010 for the construction and development of a coal and clinker terminal for the next 30 years. The terminal started commercially operating in July 2017. As of 2020, PIBT had a built capacity for handling up to 12 million tons of coal, 4 million tons of cement, and 4 million tons of clinker per year. Pakistan Railways was likely to construct a railway track to tie PIBT's terminal with the railway network, subject to the Planning Commission's approval.[4]

Port Qasim Electric Power Company (PQEPC) Coal Terminal

The Port Qasim EPC power station has a coal terminal near Port Qasim. The implementation agreement was signed in April 2015 and the terminal became operational in August 2017.[5][6]

Sinohydro Harbour was awarded the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract for the coal unloading jetty and channel. Consultant and Construction Supervision, a subsidiary of CCCC Second Harbor Consultants, was awarded the management consulting (supervision) services contract for the coal unloading jetty. Coal unloaded at the plant's jetty is sent to the coal yard in the plant by a belt conveyor. A bucket-wheel stacker-reclaimer is used at the coal yard for coal settling. The coal is then screened and crushed before being fed into the boiler coal bunker.[7]

Project Details

  • Operator: Port Qasim Electric Power Company (PQEPC)
  • Location: Port Qasim, Pakistan
  • Existing Coal Capacity (Million tonnes per annum): 4
  • Status: Operating
  • Projected In Service: August 2017
  • Type: Imports
  • Source of Coal:
  • Financing: US$ 2.085 billion

Huaneng Fuyun Coal Terminal

The Huaneng Fuyun Coal Terminal involved conversion of berths 3 and 4 into a specialized coal wharf to unload, stack, and supply imported coal for the 2 x 660 MW Sahiwal power station.[8][9]

The 2016 EIA maps the new coal terminal.

Project Details

  • Operator: Huaneng Fuyun Port & Shipping (PVT) Ltd.
  • Location: Port Qasim, Pakistan
  • Existing Coal Capacity (Million tonnes per annum): 4 to 15.12
  • Status: Operating
  • Projected In Service: September 2017
  • Type: Imports
  • Source of Coal:
  • Financing: US$ 138 million

Other proposed projects

  • In 2013, a German company met with the Federal Minister for Industries & Production Ghulam Murtaza Jatoi about the company’s interest in the management, rehabilitation, maintenance, and repair of the jetty at Bin Qasim, and its plan to invest $40 million over an initial period of 5 years. The investment would increase the offloading capacity at the berth and would also shorten the supply time from the berth to the steel mills which would therefore substantially reduce the cost of imported coal.[10]
  • In 2014, Asiapak Investments (J Energy Pvt Ltd Pakistan) and Dongfang Electric Corporation signed a Memorandum of Agreement to build a 1,320-megawatt (MW) coal plant in Bin Qasim, Karachi. The Bin Qasim Dongfang power station was aiming to operate by the first quarter of 2018. Asiapak was also partnering with international companies to establish coal import and handling infrastructure at Port Qasim with 10 million tonnes per annum throughput capacity.[11]
  • In 2016, the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency rejected an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of a proposed 4.5-kilometres-long coal conveyor system and coal yard at Port Qasim. Villagers and the Bin Qasim Association of Trade and Industry, representing over 70 business owners, objected to the likely pollution from the project and doubted the availability of water for the related plant.[12][13] The conveyor system may have been related to the Port Qasim Lucky power station (or another local proposal).[14] The Lucky project was initially intended to run on imported coal. However, upon advice of the government, it was converted to local (Thar) coal in line with the national policy of reducing reliance on imported fuel.

Articles and Resources

Sources

  1. "Port Muhammad Bin Qasim," World Port Source, accessed October 27, 2011
  2. "Port Muhammad Bin Qasim: Review and History," World Port Source, accessed September 2021
  3. "Port facilities," Port Qasim Authority, accessed September 2021
  4. "Pak Bulk : Two years after commencing operations, PIBT finally manages to make a profit," Market Screener, February 25, 2020
  5. "1320MW coal-fired power plant at Port Qasim Navigation Channel project completed," Engineering Post, September 1, 2017
  6. "Port Operational Complex: PQEPC COAL TERMINAL 1320 MW – PRIVATE SECTOR PROJECTS," Port Qasim Authority, accessed September 2021
  7. "Port Qasim Coal-Fired Power Plant, Karachi," Power Technology, accessed September 2021
  8. "Environmental Impact Assessment of Coal Transshipment Project at Berth 3 & 4 Port Qasim Karachi Sindh for Huaneng Fuyun Port & Shipping (Pvt) Ltd," Global Environmental Management Services (Pvt.) Ltd, August 2016
  9. "Port Operational Complex: Huaneng Fuyun Port & Shipping (PVT) Ltd. MW 3 & 4 (Coal Terminal)," Port Qasim Authority, accessed September 2021
  10. "A German company interested in upgrading and expanding an iron ore coal berth at Bin Qasim is planning to invest $40 million over a 5-year-period," July 17, 2013
  11. "1320 megawatts coal-fired power plant at Bin Qasim: Asiapak Investment, Dongfang Electric China sign MoA," Business Recorder, June 6, 2014
  12. "Sepa rejects EIA report of Port Qasim’s Rs13bn coal project," Dawn, October 26, 2016
  13. "Coal Conveying System: Rs 13.9 Billion Project Not Cleared By Ecnec," PIBT, March 11, 2016
  14. "Technical Assistance for Connectivity Facilities Between Coal Handling Terminal Around Port Qasim and Railways in Pakistan," Ministry of Ports and Shipping, June 2016

Related GEM.wiki articles

External resources

External Articles


Wikipedia also has an article on Port Qasim. This article may use content from the Wikipedia article under the terms of the GFDL.