ISLAMABAD, Sept 16 (ABC): Power projects using Thar coal generated 16,446.521 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity during FY2025-26, consuming 13.83 million tonnes of indigenous coal.
According to documents available with Wealth Pakistan, six power projects with a combined installed capacity of 3,960 megawatts (MW) used Thar coal either entirely or in combination with imported coal during the fiscal year.
Calculations based on the official figures show that the six plants consumed 13,834,293 tonnes of Thar coal during FY2025-26.
Block-I plant leads Thar coal generation
The 1,320MW Thar Coal Block-I Power Generation Company (Pvt.) Limited emerged as the largest generator using Thar coal. Located at Thar Block-I in Sindh, the plant generated 8,330.914 GWh while consuming 6,602,756 tonnes of indigenous coal.
The plant has an annual coal requirement of 7.6 million tonnes and meets 100% of this requirement from Thar coal.
Three projects associated with Thar Block-II also operated entirely on indigenous coal.
The 660MW Engro Powergen Thar Pvt. Ltd generated 3,816.539 GWh after consuming 3,434,627 tonnes of Thar coal. The plant has an annual coal requirement of 3.8 million tonnes.
The 330MW Thar Energy Limited generated 1,821.777 GWh using 1,630,550 tonnes of Thar coal. Meanwhile, the 330MW ThalNova Power Thar Ltd produced 1,824.147 GWh after consuming 1,627,985 tonnes.
Both 330MW plants have annual coal requirements of 1.9 million tonnes each and rely entirely on Thar coal.
Together, the four plants operating fully on Thar coal generated 15,793.377 GWh during FY2025-26. Their combined consumption reached nearly 13.30 million tonnes.
Thar coal also used in blended fuel
Two other power plants used Thar coal alongside imported coal during the fiscal year.
The 660MW Lucky Electric Power Company Limited at Port Qasim used a blend comprising 33% Thar coal and 67% imported coal. The documents attribute 627.934 GWh of its electricity generation to the Thar coal share, with consumption reaching 519,270 tonnes.
The documents further state that Lucky Electric has been regularly receiving Thar coal supplies from Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC) since September 1, 2026. The supplies support operation of the power plant on base load.
Meanwhile, the 660MW Jamshoro Power Company Limited used Thar coal at a 20% share.
The documents record 25.210 GWh of electricity generation attributable to Thar coal at Jamshoro, with consumption of 19,105 tonnes.
Jamshoro conducted a heat-rate test on June 19, 2026, using a blend of 80% imported coal and 20% Thar coal. The figures for the plant cover the period from June 19 to June 30, 2026.
Electricity supplied to national grid
According to the documents, electricity generated by the listed power projects is supplied to the national grid. The system then dispatches the electricity to consumers across Pakistan according to demand and operational requirements.
The figures show that plants operating entirely on indigenous coal accounted for about 96% of the 16,446.521 GWh attributed to Thar coal during FY2025-26.
