1,200MW Chashma-5 Dome Installed Ahead of SchedulePakistan

According to the Prime Minister’s Office, the dome was installed less than three and a half years after the project’s groundbreaking in July 2023. The prime minister expressed hope that the plant would also be completed ahead of schedule.

Chashma-5, known as C-5, will be Pakistan’s largest nuclear power plant, with a generation capacity of 1,200 megawatts. It is expected to begin producing electricity in September 2030. The prime minister described the project as a shining example of the strong friendship between Pakistan and China, and a manifestation of clean and emissions-free power generation in the country.

Clean power for factories, hospitals and homes

Addressing the ceremony, which was also attended by Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, the prime minister said nuclear energy would help reduce Pakistan’s dependence on imported fuel. He said the country needed electricity that was available round the clock, without depending on sunlight or wind, so that factories could keep running, hospitals could function without interruption and students could continue their studies.

He noted that nuclear energy already accounts for around 16.6 percent of Pakistan’s electricity generation despite representing only 8.6 percent of its installed capacity, with its share rising to 26 percent during winter.

The prime minister thanked Chinese President Xi Jinping, the Chinese government and the China National Nuclear Corporation for their support, and praised Chinese and Pakistani engineers for working together in difficult weather conditions. He also congratulated all Pakistani and Chinese organisations, engineers and workers involved in reaching the milestone.

The chairman of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission highlighted that nuclear power continues to play an important role in Pakistan’s energy security. He said the country’s nuclear power plants are safely and efficiently generating 3,530 megawatts of electricity and helping to avoid approximately 15 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year.

The prime minister said the Chashma-5 project was also an important step towards the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which he said would create new economic opportunities and strengthen cooperation between the two countries. He added that Pakistan, as a country affected by climate change, had a special responsibility to promote clean energy and protect the environment while pursuing economic growth, and to make full use of its local resources and skilled people to become self-reliant in energy.

The C-5 unit is located on the bank of the Indus River at Chashma in Mianwali District, Punjab, where four smaller Chinese-supplied reactors are already in operation.