Pakistan's nuclear weapons program gets a lot of global attention. But the country also has a large and growing civil nuclear program which has added over 3,500 MW of low-carbon electricity to the national grid. It also supports a variety of agricultural, biological and medical applications. The program relies particularly on the expertise and contributions of nuclear scientists trained at the Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology (PINSTECH) founded in 1965 by Dr. Ishrat Husain Usmani. Dr. Usmani graduated from Aligarh Muslim University and later did his doctoral research at London's Imperial College under the supervision of Nobel Laureate Niels Bohr. The entire civilian nuclear program in Pakistan operates under the International Atomic Energy Agency's safeguards.
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| PINSTECH, Pakistan |
Pakistan Nuclear Science and Technology History:
Pakistan started its nuclear program in the 1950s under the United States’ “Atoms for Peace” program, which was designed to promote peaceful uses of nuclear technology. In 1956, the Pakistani government created the Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) to lead the new program. The United States gave Pakistan its first reactor—the five megawatt Pakistan Atomic Research Reactor (PARR-1)—in 1962.
During this early period, PAEC chairman Dr. Ishrat Husain Usmani devoted government resources to train the next generation of Pakistani scientists. Usmani founded the Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Sciences and Technology (PINSTECH) in 1965 and sent hundreds of young Pakistani students to be trained abroad.
Nuclear Power Generation:
Pakistan has installed over 3,500 MW of low-carbon nuclear power generating capacity. Nuclear power plants in Pakistan generated 15,540 GWH of electricity in 2021, a jump of 66% over 2020.
Overall, Pakistan's power plants produced 136,572 GWH of power, an increase of 10.6% over 2020, indicating robust economic recovery amid the COVID19 pandemic. Nuclear offers the lowest cost of fuel for electricity (one rupee per KWH) while furnace oil is the most expensive (Rs. 22.2 per KWH).
Nuclear Medicine:
Currently, there are 51 nuclear medicine centers in Pakistan, according to National Institutes of Health (NIH). Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) is the largest single contributor with 18 centers spread across the length and breadth of the country, including some remote towns. In terms of radionuclide therapeutic radioiodine for outpatient treatment of hyperthyroidism is more widely available across Pakistan. Inpatient facilities for delivering high-dose are limited, but given the spread of centers across the country, a large extent of the country’s landscape is covered.
Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital founded by former Prime Minister Imran Khan was the first PET-CT service in Pakistan introduced in the private sector in Lahore in 2009. At present 6 PET/CT centers are operational, 2 in Lahore , 4 in Karachi backed by 5 hospital-based cyclotrons (Lahore 2, Karachi 3).
A cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator which repeatedly propels a beam of charged particles (protons) in a circular path. Medical radioisotopes are made from non-radioactive materials (stable isotopes) which are bombarded by these protons. In the next 2 to 6 months, first PET/CT with onsite cyclotron is expected to commission in Rawalpindi along with a scanner in Peshawar and Lahore taking the total tally to 9 scanners. A fourth cyclotron is expected to be operational in Karachi in the same period. All cyclotrons are used for F-18 labeled FDG as it remains the work horse of PET imaging. The optimal half-life, simple chemistry, and tons of experience and literature makes it ideal to make a successful enterprise. At present, there is no registry for the utilization of PET-CT across Pakistan; however, institutional clinical experience is increasingly shared at national and international conferences and published in literature, according to the NIH.
Agriculture Applications:
Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) has established agriculture and biotechnology centers in the country: Nuclear Institute for Agriculture (NIA) at Tandojam, Sindh (1962), Nuclear Institute for Agriculture & Biology (NIAB) (1972), National Institute of Biotechnology & Genetic Engineering (NIBGE) (1994) at Faisalabad, Punjab, and Nuclear Institute for Food & Agriculture (NIFA), in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (1982). These institutes focus on crop improvement, pest control, livestock health, food and environmental protection, and soil-water and plant nutrition management.
The research by agriculture and biotech centers has produced several new varieties of wheat, cotton, rice, mung bean, chickpea, lentil, sugarcane, castor bean, kinnow, sesame, tomato, and brassica. These varieties are high-yielding, heat tolerant, insect and disease resistant, and have more nutritional value.
According to a report from the IAEA, mutant varieties of cotton in Pakistan have improved the quality traits of crops. The mutations in the crop varieties have led to “decrease[d] use of pesticides (due to increased disease resistance), a reduction in using fertilizers and consumption of water (due to the highly efficient nutrient intake and better tolerance to drought), superior quality, and higher crop yields,” the report states.
] The new varieties developed now account for 40% of all cotton produced in Pakistan, up from just 25% two years ago and from nonexistent yield in 2016, according to Nuclear NewsWire.
International Atomic Energy Agency:
Recently, the IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi visited Pakistan to meet with Pakistani officials in charge of the civilian nuclear program. Here's a press release of the IAEA about the visit:
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the IAEA will increase collaboration in peaceful applications of nuclear science and technology, particularly in agriculture and medicine, to the benefit of the country and its neighbours. That was the outcome of Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi’s two-day trip to Pakistan this week, during which he met with the country’s leadership — including its Prime and Foreign Ministers — and visited numerous nuclear facilities across the country, some of which he inaugurated.
Mr Grossi began his visit by meeting with Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif. The two spoke about the worsening effects of climate change on Pakistan and how nuclear science and IAEA support is helping the country.
For decades Pakistan has been ranked as one of the 10 most vulnerable countries to climate change, and last summer, was inundated with climate-change linked flooding which caused mass displacement of people and economic damages to the tune of USD 40 billion. The IAEA and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in coordination and consultation with Pakistani authorities developed an emergency support package to assist the country in applying nuclear science to better understand the flood’s impact on soils, crops and the potential spread of animal and zoonotic diseases.
The Prime Minister expressed his desire to strengthen collaboration with the IAEA in agriculture and medicine and his support to the Agency’s efforts to promote peace and development worldwide. The two also discussed nuclear safety and security Ukraine, where Mr Grossi is championing efforts to establish a protection zone around Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, a facility beset with nuclear safety and security challenges caused by the war in the country.
In a meeting with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Mr Grossi said opportunities for the peaceful use of nuclear science and technology in Pakistan were plentiful, emphasizing how nuclear applications and IAEA initiatives are addressing climate change and issues of access to cancer care. Mr Bhutto Zardari said that Pakistan and the IAEA will further enhance cooperation and grow the role of nuclear applications in dealing with climate change, water, energy and food security.
In Islamabad, Mr Grossi met with the Minister of Planning and Development, Ahsan Iqbal, to discuss the role of nuclear applications in addressing Pakistan’s vulnerability to climate change. The Director General also met with Pakistani fellows of the IAEA Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship Programme, an initiative seeking to help build gender-balanced capacities in the nuclear sector.
Nuclear for energy, food and health
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| Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi inaugurates the new spent fuel dry storage facility at Chashma Nuclear Power Plant. (Photo: D. Candano/IAEA) |
Pakistan currently operates six nuclear power reactors at two sites, that generate about 10 per cent of the country’s total and almost a quarter of its low-carbon electricity. During his trip, Mr Grossi visited one of those sites, Chashma Nuclear Power Plant, 250 kilometres south of Islamabad. Inaugurating the site’s new spent fuel dry storage facility, Mr Grossi highlighted the importance of managing spent fuel safely and securely.
Mr Grossi was welcomed at the Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology (PINSTECH), an IAEA partner in work related to human health, nutrition and water analysis. At PINSTECH, Mr Grossi inaugurated a dosimetry laboratory. Mr Grossi also visited the Pakistan Centre of Excellence in Nuclear Security (PCENS), saying he was impressed by the high standard of the facility and that he looked forward to further collaboration.
At the Nuclear Medicine Oncology and Radiotherapy Institute in Islamabad, Mr Grossi inaugurated Cyberknife, a new cancer treatment facility that he described as a milestone for the country. He said Pakistan would be able to support its neighbours with regards to cancer treatment access by becoming a regional centre under Rays of Hope — an IAEA initiative seeking to increase cancer care access in low- and middle-income countries by helping to introduce and improve radiation medicine capacities and build the cancer care workforce.
In Faisalabad, Mr Grossi visited the Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB), designating it as an IAEA Collaborating Centre in agriculture and biotechnology. In a special ceremony, Mr Grossi planted a Sago Palm at the site and spoke about the IAEA’s collaboration with the facility in developing climate change resilient cotton varieties. NIAB is also a national laboratory under the IAEA’s ZODIAC initiative for combating zoonotic diseases and future pandemics.
Mr Grossi toured another IAEA Collaborating Centre, the National Institute of Safety and Security, when visiting the Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority and meeting with its Chairman Faizan Mansoor. He was also honoured to inaugurate the National Radiation Emergency Coordination Centre (NRECC) in Islamabad.
Visiting the headquarters of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), Mr Grossi had a meaningful exchange with the Commission on the comprehensive and cohesive nature of the country’s peaceful nuclear programme. Mr Grossi's visit to Pakistan was on the invitation of PAEC Chairman Raja Ali Raza Anwar, whom he thanked for Pakistan's hospitality during the two days. The Director General concluded his visit in Islamabad with a seminar on climate change mitigation, during which he highlighted the role of the IAEA in supporting climate-vulnerable countries in addressing the climate crisis with nuclear science and technology.
Related Links:
Pakistan Ramps Up Nuclear Power Generation
Pakistan Projected to Be World's 6th Largest Economy By 2075
Fintech Revolution in Pakistan
Over a Million Pakistani University Students Enrolled in STEM Fields
Pakistan Scientific Output is World's Fastest Growing
Pakistan Nuclear Program in Cross Hairs of India and Israel
Pakistan at 75
Fiber Network Growth in Pakistan
Riaz Haq's Youtube Channel
32 comments:
Dear Sir
Thanks for sharing such useful and great information . It is a shame how some Pakistani guests appear on TV programs of Pakistan and they start blaming America for the mess and problems which the country is facing and not only that one of the guest siting in the TV program even complained how Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto as a President of Pakistan fooled Kissinger the state secretary of America when he came to Pakistan and conveyed the message of President Nixon that Pakistan must stop its nuclear program .
Y is N power not pumping more ? The Genius of AQK and the Pakistan Military,and the Mandarins of the External Affairs Ministry,is that Pakistan has a high cost power matrix - which JUSTIFIES N Power - and thus,justifies Enrichment facilities and Nuclear power generation.
And what about N-Power from PRC ?
Why is Pakistan waiting ?
Is it the Capacity factor on Coal and Gas IPPs ? Pakistan has been trapped into the High Capacity charges Coal,Goas and Oil IPP and PPA, Some say hat even if free variable cost power comes hydro,it will be unviable ,as then, Capacity Charges on thermal IPPs will need to be paid !
Even if Pakistan pays The Capa charges - Pakistan N Power based on Chinese N-Power plants will be viable
Is it the Taishan N-disaster, in China (using French technology) ?
Taishan was an EPR - sold by the French and 3 rd Gen Tech
Pakistan can use tested CHINESE N REACTORS - which have had a NIL accident/history for decades - which are MUCH cheaper (in terms of capital costs), than the French EPR (with higher operating costs w.r.t the EPR).These Chinese N-Power plants will come on 30 year loans IN YUAN (and not USD)
CHINESE N-POWER IS THE QUANTUM LEAP for PAKISTAN !
THE TRANSFORMATION OF PAKISTAN SOCIETY AND ECONOMY = LOW COST POWER,WITH NIL ENERGY SECURITY RISK.
N-POWER, IS ONLY NIL RISK ENERGY SECURITY OPTION,WITH CHINESE FUEL RODS AND HEAVY WATER (FOR INITIAL FUEL LOAD)
CHINESE REACTORS IN CHINA - MANY ARE NOT UNDER IAEA SAFEGUARDS - SO WHAT IS THE PROBLEM, IF PAKISTAN SETS UP CHINESE N -POWER PLANTS ?
PAKISTAN CAN EXCEL AT "OPERATING" NPP.
CONSTRUCTION AND COMMISSIONING IS A JV WITH PRC
THE LEU WILL BE SUPPLIED BY PRC OR THE PU IN SNF IN PAKISTAN CAN BE BLENDED FOR MOX FUEL
THE NPP IN PAKISTAN IS ALSO A CHANCE FOR CHINESE SNF,TO RECOVER PU,TO MAKE MOX FUEL FOR PAKISTANI NPP
SO,IN THEORY,EVEN IF THE CHINESE NPP, IS PLACED UNDER IAEA SAFEGUARDS, THERE IS NO PROBLEM, AS THE LEU, HEAVY WATER & TECHNOLOGY, IS ALL CHINESE.SAMIR SARDANA
CHINA & PAKISTAN HAVE ENOUGH HEU & PU TO WIPE INDIA OFF THE ,MAP & SEND IT TO RAMAYANA ERA !
SO NOW FOCUS HAS TO BE ON NUKE POWER GENERATION & WEAPONS DELIVERY & WARHEADS
CHINESE NPP HAS 40 YEAR LIFE AND UPTO MAY BE 50. IT IS SOLD IN YUAN ON 40 YEAR LOAN, AT 3-% IN YUAN AND WITH A CAPACITY UTILISATION OF 4-5 TIMES OF A SOLAR PROJECT. IT IS BASE AND PEAK LOAD POWER AND THE PLANT WILL HAVE GUARANTEED OPERATING PARAMETERS BY THE CHINESE
PRC now has.critical control over Uranium,in Africa,and other nations.dindooohindoo
Providentially,PRC is also ramping its N capacities - and so,this is the time to cut capacity costs,of procurement.Besides,with France cut out of the Sub deal,to the Aussies - by NATO,they will sell the latest Gen 4 and 5 tech to PRC - and thus,to Pakistan.
bard google output
The composition of electrical energy sources in Pakistan is as follows:
Gas: 61%
Coal: 17%
Nuclear: 4%
Wind: 4%
Solar: 3%
Other: 1%
As you can see, gas is the most important source of electricity in Pakistan, followed by coal. Nuclear power is a relatively small part of the mix, but it is growing. Wind and solar power are still small, but they are growing rapidly.
The government of Pakistan has set a goal of generating 60% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. This is a ambitious goal, but it is possible if the government can continue to invest in renewable energy projects.
Here are some of the challenges that Pakistan faces in terms of its energy mix:
Dependency on imported oil: Pakistan is heavily dependent on imported oil to generate electricity. This makes the country vulnerable to price fluctuations in the global oil market.
Inefficient power plants: Many of the power plants in Pakistan are old and inefficient. This means that they waste a lot of energy, which drives up the cost of electricity.
Grid losses: There is a significant amount of grid losses in Pakistan. This means that a lot of the electricity that is generated is lost before it reaches the consumers.
PAKISTAN HAS THE EDGE OVER INDIA FOR FUTURE PLANNING AS IT CAN LEARN FROM THE INDIAN DISASTERS
WHO WILL SUPPLY THE HEAVY WATER TO THE CHAIWALA ?
THE HWB IS THE BOTTLENECK
FOR 7000 MW U NEED 700O TONS OF HW AS INITIAL LOAD FOR CRITICALITY ASSUMING PHWR,THEN U NEED HW STOCKS,AND THEN THERE IS DELETION & LOSSES,OF HW IN OPERATION .EVEN WITH HW UPGRADATION PLANTS - IT IS A HUGE REQUIREMENT
INDIA HAS LIMITED NATURAL URANIUM
IF THE ACTUAL COST OF HW IS LOADED ONTO PHWR - ARE THEY VIABLE ?
IF THE FERTILISER PLANTS CONK OFF, THERE WILL BE NO SYNTHETIC GAS FOR THE HWB! THEN THERE IS THE REQUIREMENT OF STEAM FOR THE HWB.
IS CSP CHEAPER ?
HAVING A HWB PLANT + FERTILISER PLANT + NPS FOR STEAM ALL IN 1 PLACE IS A PRIME SECURITY RISK -ALSO !
INDIAN HWB STRATEGY WAS PLANNED WHEN THE CANDU REACTORS WERE INSTALLED. CHAIWALA ONLY NEEDS HW FOR BARC WHICH MAKES PLUTONIUM FOR NUKES ! SO LONG AS THAT IS MET - REST IS ALL FOR SHOW ! NO ONE KNOW THE COST OF NUKE POWER IN INDIA !
THE NUKE ARCHITECTURE IS TO JUSTIFY URANIUM ENRICHMENT FACILITIES - FOR NUKES & NUKE SUB FUEL !
FEW NATIONS USE HEAVY WATER WHICH IS USED FOR PHWR !
MOST IN THE 1ST WORLD USE LWR AND BWR WHICH USE LEU !
INDIA DOES NOT !
Y ?
FOR INDIA THE PRIORITY IS TO USE THE JADUGODA AND MEGHALAYA URANIUM FOR CENTRIFUGAL OPERATIONS TO ENRICH URANIUM TO HEU FOR NUKES AND MEU FOR NUKE SUB FUEL
THEN COMES THE LEU FOR INDIAN LWR AND BWR - BUT EVEN THERE THE AIM IS TO IRRADIATE U238 TO PU239 VIDE 2 DECAYS
THE PU 239 TARGET IS NOT MOX - BUT NUKES USING PU 239 - WHICH IS LOW COST OPTION AS OPPOSED TO HEU 235.
AND THEN U HAVE THE RESEARCH AND BREEDERS WHICH ONLY MAKE PU 239
BECAUSE CHAIWALA DOES NOT WANT TO PLACE THE CENTRIFUGES,UNDER IAEA SAFEGUARDS,HE WILL NOT USE LWR AS THEN THE URANIUM IMPORTED WILL NEED TO BE ENRICHED BY CHAIWALA
BUT THERE IS HUGE STOCK PILE OF LEU IN THE WORLD & SURPLUS ENRICHMENT CAPACITIES IN THE US/EU/JAPAN AND RUSSIA - BUT STILL CHAIWALA WANTS TO USE PHWR AND IMPORT NATURAL URANIUM WHEN THERE IS NO RELIABLE HW IN INDIA ? dindooohindoo
BOTTOM LINE - IF INDIA CAN RAMP UP NPP - PAKISTAN IS MUCH MORE THAN JUSTIFIED !
Anon: "As you can see, gas is the most important source of electricity in Pakistan, followed by coal. Nuclear power is a relatively small part of the mix, but it is growing. Wind and solar power are still small, but they are growing rapidly"
BARD's info is outdated.
Here's the latest available data:
In 2021, hydroelectric dams contributed 37,689 GWH of electricity or 27.6% of the total power generated, making hydropower the biggest contributor to power generated in the country. It was followed by coal (20%), LNG (19%) and nuclear (11.4%). Nuclear power plants generated 15,540 GWH of electricity in 2021, a jump of 66% over 2020. Overall, Pakistan's power plants produced 136,572 GWH of power in 2021, an increase of 10.6% over 2020, indicating robust economic recovery amid the COVID19
pandemic.
https://www.riazhaq.com/2022/08/pakistan-plans-to-convert-coal-fired.html
PAKISTAN HAS THE IDEAL REASON FOR NPP
IT HAS A HIGH COST POWER GRID
LACK OF FX USD
LARGE IMPORTS OF COAL,OIL AND GAS
SO IT IS ON A DIFFERENT PLATTER VS IRAN
Iran mines of Uranium ore have less than 1% U-235 and are deep
Converting a 1% Ore into Yellow Cake and then UF 6 at 5% U-235 is a Uranium concentration increase by 500 times
To move from 5% to 90% is ONLY 18 TIMES
SIMPLE MATHS - NO NEED FOR SWU ANALYSIS !
CONVERTING THE ENRICHED U-235 OF 20% PLUS,FROM GAS TO METALLIC FORM - HAS ONLY 1 PURPOSE
IRAN BOUGHT YELLOW CAKE FROM SOUTH AFRICA AND CHINA- LONG BEFORE THE SAFEGUARDS AND UN SANCTIONS - AND IT IS O/S THE IAEA REGULATIONS AND SAFEGUARDS.WHICH FORM IS THAT CAKE IN TODAY ?
OIL AT 120 MEANS THAT IRAN IS NOT BOTHERED ABOUT SANCTIONS
Y DOES A NATION WITH SNOW.WATER,RIVERS,SUN AND COAL AND OIL AND GAS NEED N-POWER ? WHAT IS THE EXCUSE ? THAT IT HAS NO REFINING CAPACITY ?
IRAN N-POWER PLANTS - OF 1000 MW PLUS,NEED INITIAL FUEL LOADS WHICH IRAN CANNOT MAKE - FROM LOCAL SOURCES - but IRAN is also stockpiling Heavy Water
SO THERE IS ONLY 1 REASON FOR THESE N-POWER PLANTS.
OR TAKE THE CASES OF IRAN FPEP
FFEP = AL GHADIR ,
IT WAS STARTED TO MAKE LEU 5%
THEN THE IRANIANS BACKED OUT AND THEN TOOK IT TO 20%
THEN THEY AGAIN BACKED OUT AND TOOK IT TO 60% !
WHAT IS IAEA DOING ? WHAT IS AL GHADIR
IT WAS A TUNNEL BUILT FOR IRC - WHICH WAS THEN CONVERTED INTO IR 1 ENRICHMENT SITE AND NOW IR 6
IT WAS NO SECRET,AS IT HAS S-300 BATTERIES,AND SO,,CIA SPY DRONES,WOULD HAVE SEEN IT !
IF IRAN WANTS TO MAKE HEU, IT WOULD CHOOSE A DEEP UNDERGROUND SITE,WITH ADS = WHICH IS FODOR !
COMMON SENSE !
THEN COMES THE RELIGIOUS TILT,& THE NAME AL GHADIR, IN SHIA THEOLOGY,AND IT BEING 20 KM FROM QOM !
WHICH WORLD IS IAEA LIVING IN ?
PAKISTAN HAS IMPECCABLE CREDENTIALS FOR A MASSIVE UPGRADE OF NPP. dindooohindoo
PAKISTAN ASLO NEEDS TO TOM-TOM ITS NUKE SAFETY RECORD
STEP 1
1- Pakistan should disclose the number of nuclear and radiological events on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES) scale.IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THERE HAS NEVER BEEN AN ACCIDENT OR AN INCIDENT, IN THE LAST 10 YEARS, BENCHMARK THAT WITH INDIA/US AND EU- PAKISTAN MIGHT BE, ON TOP
2- Pakistan should disclose the number of nuclear incidents reported to ITDB in different LEVELS, IN THE LAST 10 YEARS, BENCHMARK THAT WITH INDIA/US AND EU- PAKISTAN MIGHT BE, ON TOP!
3- Pakistan should disclose the number of cases of LEU/HEU THEFT OR EVEN MISSING STOCK IT MIGHT BE NIL
4- Pakistan should disclose the number of cases of U308/UO2/ORE/MONAZITE THEFT OR EVEN MISSING STOCK IT MIGHT BE NIL
5- PAKISTAN SHOULD THEN disclose the number of cases of DU/SNFTHEFT OR EVEN MISSING STOCK IT MIGHT BE NIL
STEP 2
LASTLY, I BET THAT NO RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL LIKE TECHNETIUM OR MOLY 99,WAS STOLEN, FROM HOSPITALS IN PAKISTAN
FURTHER,I BET THE PLANTS WHICH PROCESSES HEU INTO MO99 OR TECHNETIUM DID NOT REPORT A 1 GRAM THEFT OF HEU OR LEU
STEP 3
BENCHMARK WITH INDIA AND PRINT IN WALL STREET JOURNAL ! FRONT PAGE ! WSJ WILL LOVE IT !
STEP 2
LASTLY, I BET THAT NO RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL LIKE TECHNETIUM OR MOLY 99,WAS STOLEN, FROM HOSPITALS IN PAKISTAN
FURTHER,I BET THE PLANTS WHICH PROCESSES HEU INTO MO99 OR TECHNETIUM DID NOT REPORT A 1 GRAM THEFT OF HEU OR LEU
STEP 3
BENCHMARK WITH INDIA AND PRINT IN WALL STREET JOURNAL ! FRONT PAGE ! WSJ WILL LOVE IT !
GRANTED THAT THE PAKISTAN N- SECTOR, HAS A SMALL SCALE - BUT ZERO THEFT AND MISSING STOCK,S IS S A COMMENT ON SECURITY,SAFETY AND MATERIAL ACCOUNTING !
THE 1ST PLACE TO STEAL LEU/HEU, IS THE MEDICAL ISOTOPE MANUFACTURING CENTRES - AND EVEN THERE - THE NUMBER OF CASES IN PAKISTAN, IS NIL
THERE ARE SEVERAL CASES OF RADIOACTIVE THEFT IN INDIA OF DU,YELLOW CAKE, NATURAL URANIUM AND LEU WITH 2% U-235 AND URANIUM RODS (WHICH CANNOT COME FROM HOSPITALS). STOLEN URANIIUM CAN BE USED TO MAKE REDs/RDDs and INDsdindooohindoo
THERE WAS A FATAL SHOOTING INCIDENT IN KALPAKKAM IN WHIH 3 CISF WER KILLED- AND THE PATHETIC SECURITY OF INDIAN NUCLEAR PLANTS IS DOCUMNTED N THE IAEA AND THE US CONGRESS
• https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/3-CISF-personnel-shot-dead-by-colleague-in-Kalpakkam/article60392799.ece
• THERE WAS ALSO, A CASE OF DELIBERATE MASS POISONING, IN KAIGA
• https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/sabotage-in-kaiga-tritium-added-to-drinking-water/articleshow/5282881.cms?from=mdr
THERE HAVE ALSO BEEN CASES WHERE URANIUM HAS BEEN USED BY NORTH EAST AND BANGLADESH FREEDOM FIGHTERS TO MAKE INDs.dindooohindoo
Y DOES PAKISTAN NOT PROPOGATE THE SUPERLATIVE INDIAN NUCLEAR SAFETY RECORD ?
CHAIWALA WILL DO ALL IT TAKES,TO THROTTLE PAKISTANI NPP GROWTH
THE TRUTH IS BELOW :
NDIA RANKS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE NUCLEAR MATERIAL SECURITY INDEX – BELOW PAKISTAN AND CHINA,AND IN 20202 PAKISTAN, WAS THE MOST IMPROVED NATION
o https://www.geo.tv/latest/299375-nuclear-security-index-2020-ranks-pakistan-most-improved-country-for-security-measures
As per the index, Pakistan is six points ahead of India when it comes to taking steps to ensure safety of nuclear assets.
• WEAK CYBER SECURITY AND ACCOUNTING LOOPHOLES,ARE HIGHLIGHTED BY THE NUCLEAR MATERIAL SECURITY INDEX FOR INDIA
o https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-ranks-19-in-theft-ranking-for-countries-with-weapons-usable-nuclear-materials-5342468/
The weaknesses are particularly apparent in areas of transport security, material control, accounting, and measures to protect against the insider threat.
• THE NUMEROUS CASES OF NUCLEAR THEFT IN INDIA ARE A GROSS VIOLATION OF SEVERAL IAEA CONVENTIONS AMD STANDARDS ,AS UNDER:
o Nuclear Security Recommendations on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and Nuclear Facilities (INFCIRC/225/Revision 5)
o INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Nuclear Security Recommendations on Radioactive Material and Associated Facilities, IAEA Nuclear Security Series No. 1
o Nuclear Security Recommendations on Nuclear and Other Radioactive Material out of Regulatory Control, IAEA Nuclear Security Series No. 15, IAEA, Vienna (2011)
o Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials and its 2005 Amendment (signed by India)
THE RUSSIAN HWR/PWHR IN INDIA,HAVE COST OVERRUNS,OF BILLIONS OF USD ? NO ONE KNOWS, WHAT IS HAPPENING ! CHAIWALA IS PRAYING TO MAHAKALI !
CHAIWALA IS USING THE NUKE REACTORS TO PAY PUTIN FOR THE NUKE SUBS ! ALSO CHAIWALA IS USING THE RUSSIAN REACTORS TO IMPORT NUKE FUEL RODS AND LEU ,WHICH IS GONG TO UNSAFEGUARDED REACTORS AND ENRICHMENT PLANTS
SO INDIA IS MAKING MORE AND MORE NUKE BOMBS ! FOR WHAT,AND FOR WHOM ! CHAIWALA CANNOT LOAD THE HEU,INTO THE NUKE SUBS,AS THE NUKE REACTIOR, IS SEALED - THE SUB WILL HAVE TO BE CUT OPEN !
WHO IS THE TARGET OF INDIAN NUKES ? PRC AND PAKISTAN ! AND CHAIWAL NUKES ARE HEU BASED - THEY HAVE NOT MASTERED THE PU BOMB !
INDIA IS THE ONLY NATION WHERE THE CAG OR AUDITOR, CANNOT VALUE OR VERIFY THE STOCKS,ACROSS THE SUPPLY CHAIN ! WHAT DOES IAEA DO ? dindooohindoo
UKRAINE PROVES THE SAFETY OF NPP !
INSPITE OF SEVERAL MISSILE HITS THE PLANT IS WORKING AND EXPORTING POWER
UKRAINE PROVES THAT IF THE TECHNOLOGY IS SAFE AND EXECUTED AS PER SOP - IT IS A NO RISK OPTION!
A SIMILAR STRIKE ON A GAS OR OIL IPP WOULD HAVE BLOWN THE PLANT TO BITS !
BUT NOT THE UKRAINE NPP - AS THEY ARE MADE IN RUSSIA -AND PUTIN KNEW WHERE TO HIT
WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT THE UKRAINE NPP
1- WHETHER PUTIN TOOK AWAY THE SNF FROM UKRAINE NPP
2- WHETHER UKRAINE WAS RECOVERING WEAPONS GRADE PU FROM THE SNF
3- WHETHER THE SNF IS IN NATO COUNTRIES
4- WHETHER THE SNF WAS FROM URANIUM FUEL SUPPLIED BY NATO
THERE IS NO FUKUSHIMA THREAT AS PUMPS ARE WORKING AND THERE IS NO DEARTH OF DIESEL. - SO NO THREAT OF OVERHEATING AND EXPLOSION
CHAIWALA WILL LOSE ALL THE STATE POLLS TILL 2024
BY 2024 HIS RAFALES WILL BE IN FULL OPS MODE
A STRIKE ON PAKISTAN BY CHAIWALA IS ALMOST CERTAIN
PAKISTAN HAS TO BE VERY CAREFUL WITH CHAIWALA AND HIS VANAR SENA
JUST 10 DAYS AGO - 3 MISSILES MISFIRED FROM POKHRAN IN A TRIAL !
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/three-pokhran-missiles-miss-target-fall-in-fields/articleshow/98983951.cms?from=mdr
3 MONTHS AGO A BRAHMOS HAD A SAFE LANDING IN PAKISTAN
https://thewire.in/security/misfired-brahmos-which-landed-in-pakistan-could-have-led-to-warlike-situation-union-govt-to-hc#:~:text=On%20March%2011%2C%20the%20defence,serious%20view%20of%20the%20incident.
ARE ALL THESE ACCIDENTS ?
OR IS CHAIWALA PREPARING FOR A PRE-EMPTIVE STRIKE ! THE POLITICAL CHAOS IN PAKISTAN - MIGHT NOT BE COINCIDENTAL !
PAKISTAN HAS TO SERIOUSLY EVALUATE A 1ST STRIKE ! NUKES IN THE HANDS OF CHAIWALA AND HIS VANARS IS A DIS-ASS-TER !
AND SO, THE TIME HAS COME FOR PAKISTAN TO HAVE A 1ST AND SECOND STRIKE OPTION = TAKING CHINESE NUKE SUBS ON LEASE
PAKISTAN CAN TAKE OUT THE OIL AND GAS IPPs + all IPPS which have USD tarriffs and SWAP them with Chinese NPP
That takes out the USD and Fuel Price Risk
AND
SWAPS the USD DEBT of Pakistan into CNY for the 30 year loan for NPP from China
THIS 1 POWER SWAP CAN CHANGE PAKISTAN FOREVER !
Y IS IT NOT BEING DONE ?
Y IS PAKISTAN HYDRO CAPACITY NOT BEING HIKED ?
IT IS ALL A US + IMF PLOT WITH THE AID OF CHAIWALA
MANY YEARS AGO,PAKISTAN WAS TRAPPED INTO OIL AND GAS PPA WITH HIGH CAPACITY CHARGES AND USD TARRIFFS ! THE GENIUS OF THE CIA WAS THAT THEY SAW THE OIL PRICE SHOCK AND THE IMPACT ON PAKISTAN !
THE USD + US FED RATES = US WMD,WITHOUT RADIATION !
ADD TO THAT OIL ! THESE 3 COMBOS LEVERED THE CIA CAN CAUSE CIVIL WAR IN PAKISTAN - WHICH THEN PROVIDES THE PRETEXT TO SEIZE THE NUKES AND ALLOW AN INDIAN INVASION !
THE HOOPLA OF AQK + NUKE SAFETY WAS RAISED BY CHAIWALA AND THE WEST - NOT DUE TO THE RISK OF NUKE TERROR !
THE AIM WAS TO BLOCK SALE OF BPP, HEAVY WATER AND URANIUM TO PAKISTAN !
URANIUM = SALVATION FOR PAKISTAN ! AND THE CIA + CHAIWALA STRATEGY HAS WORKED !
PAKISTAN IS IN THE BLACK HOLE OF POWER CIRCULAR DEBT !
CIA TARGETS THE WEAKEST LINK IN THE CHAIN = VULNERABLE POLITICIANS !
IF PAKISTAN TILTS TO CHINA FOR NPP + URANIUM, THE SWAP HAS TO BE FOR PAKISTAN TO EXIT THE AMERICAN ORBIT ! US WANTS A CONTROLLABLE PAKISTAN AND NOT A PROSPEROUS PAKISTAN !
SIMILARLY, SPONSORING TERROR IN PAKISTAN BY THE WEST, HAS THE AIM OF DEMONISING ISLAM,STARTING A CHAIN OF REPRISALS, AND SPLITTING SOCIETY BETWEEN RADICALS AND OTHERS - WHERE THE 'OTHERS' BECOME US ASSETS.
SO THE NUCLEAR POWER MIX IN PAKISTAN = GEOPOLITICS ! TIME HAS COME FOR PAKISTAN TO CROSS OVER TO CHINA !
DRAMATIC RAMP UP IN NPP, MEANS MORE DU + SNF + PU 238 AND PU 239
DU = MORE HIGH GRADE AMMUNITION
PU 238/39 - MORE NUKES TO NUKE OUT CHAIWALA AND A SOURCE FOR NOX FULE
SNF = MORE OPTIONS TO RECOVER LEU AND OTHERS
THE CORE QUESTION !
Y IS PAKISTAN NOT RAMPING UP ITS HYDRO/ NUKE AND RENEWABLES
WHAT IS THE PROBLEM ?
IT IS THE LODESTONE OF CAPACITY CHARGES ON RPP/IPP WITH GAS AND RFO/DIESEL
SO TODAY WE ARE AT A SITUATION WHERE EVEN IF HYDRO POWER IS SET UP AT 3 CENTS A UNIT OR SAY 1 CENT A UNIT FOR 1000 MW LARGE HYDRO PROJECT - THAT WILL MEAN THAT 1000 MW OF EXISTING RPP AND IPP WILL HAVE TO BE SHUT DOWN
IN THAT CASE THESE RPP/IPP WILL BE PAID BILLIONS OF USD OF CAPACITY CHARGES AND THAT TOO IN USD.IF YOU LOAD THESE COSTS ON TO THE HYDEL PLANTS - THEN THAT COST WILL BECOME UNVIABLE.
THAT IS THE DISASTER !
THESE CAPA CHARGES USD PPA WERE PLANNED TO ENSURE THAT ALL LOW COST POWER OPTIONS WILL BECOME UNVIABLE !
HOW CAN PAKISTAN ALLOW THIS SCAM ?
AND THESE CAPA CHARGES ARE SET UP BASED ON PEAK LOAD DEMAND OF POWER ! AND IN USD !
HAS THE TIME CONE FOR PAKISTAN TO DO A 'GRAND FORCE MAJEUERE' AND TERMINATE THESE PPAs ?
WHO ARE THE ULTIMATE BENEFICIARIES OF THESE PPAs ?
THE BIGGEST HURDLE IN THE QUANTUM LEAP IN THE PAKISTAN NPP CAPACITY TO SAT 20000 MW IS THE NPT AND THE NSG
PAKISTAN HAS NOT,WILL NOT AND SHOULD NOT SIGN THE NPT ! THE LOCAL URANIUM IS USED TO MAKE HEU AND PU FOR BOMBS ! ALL THE COMMERCIAL NPP USE IMPORTED FUEL
INDIA HAS NOT ! BUT CHAIWALA GOT A WAIVER !
THE ANGEL IS PRC ! CHINA JOINED THE NPT IN 2004 ! THE CHINESE NPP IN PAKISTAN ARE PWR AND PRE DATE 2004 ! THE CANDU IN KARACHI WAS A DISASTER - AS THE CANADIANS DESERTED PAKISTAN ON INSTRUCTIONS ON NSG AND NOT SIGNING NPT - LEAVING TONS OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE IN KARACHI !
SO PAKISTAN CANNOT RELY ON US/EU OR CANADA !
NSG HAS BANNED SALE OF URANIUM AND NUKE REACTORS TO PAKISTAN ! ONLY CHINA HAS THE LOOPHOLE OF PRE 2004 PWR WHICH ARE TO BE 'EXPANDED' AT THE 'SAME SITE'
SOLUTION 1
SIGN MOUs with PRC for setting up PWR at existing sites set up pre 2004.No one knows what will happen in the future.AT LEAST A MOU WILL EXIST 'BEFORE'ANY CONTINGENT EVENT OF DISASTER TOMORROW -SUCH AS NSG OBJECTION TO CHINESE NEW CAPACITIES AT OLD SITES
SOLUTION 2
RAMP UP MINING OR URANIUM AT ALL COSTS ! THE ORE QUALITY IS IRRELEVANT AS TO MAKE A NUKE - COST IS NOT THE CRITERIA ! AIM IS TO SKYROCKET THE PU AND HEU STOCK PILE - AS THE ENRICHHMENT AND REPROCESSING FACILTIES,ARE NOT UNDER IAEA SAFEGUARDS
SOLUTION 3
AFTER THE STOCKPILE,IN 2 ABOVE, SEPARATE THE CIVIL AND MILITARY FACILITIES.W/O THIS,THE NSG WILL NOT GIVE A WAIVER -- LIKE THEY GAVE TO CHAIWALA.PAKISTAN HAS TO GET THE WAIVER AS THE CHINESE WILL NEED NEW SITES TO RAMP UP CAPACITIES - WHICH THE NSG WILL OBJECT TO.
THERE ARE 60 CITIES IN INDIA WITH A POPULATION OF 8 LACS AND ABOVE AND 100 CITIES WITH A POPULATION MORE THAN 4 LACS.IN 2-3 YEARS, SOLUTION NO.2 WIL HAVE ENOUGH PU BOMBS TO NUKE OUT EVERY CITY OF CHAISTHAN WITH A POPU,OF MORE THAN 5 LACS, AT LEAST THRICE - WITH 1 HIT FROM THE SEA !
W/O SOLUTION 3 AND NSG WAIVER - CHINA MAY NOT SET UP NEW NPP SITES UNLESS CHINA DEFIES THE NSG - AS THERE IS A FACE OFF IN SOUTH CHINA SEA
THERE IS ONLY 1 WAY TO BYPASS THE NSG,NPT
IT IS AKIN TO USING A RUSSIAN FLOATING NPP.
IF A RUSSIAN FLOATING NPP WERE TO DOCK AT GWADAR IT COULD FEED THE PAKISTAN GRID WITH LOW COST ENERGY !
SO HERE NO URANIUM OR REACTORS,ARE BEING SOLD TO PAKISTAN - AND SO, NO NSG OR NPT,IS APPLICABLE
BUT THIS MAY NOT BE PRACTICAL OR CHEAP ENOUGH
SOLUTION
PAKISTAN HAS TO SET UP A NUKE SEZ ON PAKISTAN GEOGRAPHY AFTER GIVING THE LAND ON A 300 YEAR LEASE TO PRC. THE NPP WLL BE A JV BETWEEN CHINA AND KAZAKHASTAN. KAZAKH WILL SUPPLY URANIUM TO CHINA,TO MAKE SEU/MEU OR LEU
CHINA WILL SUPPLY THE REACTORS AND THE FUEL RODS. THE NPP WILL NE OPERATED BY PAKISTANI AND CHINESE. THE ENTIRE NSEZ,WILL BE UNDER IAEA SAFEGUARDS.THE DU AND SNF WILL BE EVACUATED TO CHINA
SO THE NPP IS ON CHINESE SOIL,OWNED BY CHINA AND KAZAKH,SELLING POWER TO THE PAKISTANI GRID.
THAT WILL CIRCUMVENT THE NSG.PAKISTAN HAS TO RAMP UP ITS NPP CAPACITY,AT ALL COSTS
PAKISTAN HAS TO ADVERTISE ITS NUKE SUCCESS
IN THE 1970S WHEN PAKISTAN DID NOT SIGN THE NPT AND THE CANDU SUPPLIERS EXITED PAKISTAN LEAVING BEHIND NUKE WASTE - THE WORLD THOUGHT PAKISTAN WOULD CAVE IN.
INSTEAD THE PAEC MADE THEIR OWN HEAVY WATER AND TOOLS AND MACHINES AND ALSO THE FUEL RODS
THAT IS A SINGULAR AND STELLAR ACHIEVEMENT
THAT IS TO BE CONTRASTED WITH THE DISASTER OF THE HEAVY WATER BOARD IN INDIA.
It may be noted that many of the HWP IN INDIA,are closed down due to lack of power and gas.In others words,the nuclear security and safety of India is left to the mercy of a fertilizer plant for gas – and lack of power from the grid.A HWP with a CPP or a GAS PLANT – is not viable,and inspite of that the nation has HWR for NPP,and since these are a minority in the world – exim trade in heavy water is not feasible
Even in NPCIL,the costing of the HW is a mystery,as it does not reflect the cost of the same ,since the HWP are inefficient and with low capacity usage – and the govtt is trying to subsidise the N power plants.Hence the HW make up and lease charges are a mystery and reflect the OPACITY OF THE DAE.The Indian HWP have had serious explosions,and the govtt has spent 100s of crores in mothballing,the plants – and has still not decided,to dispose or destroy them – for some mysterious reasons.Inspite of NPCIL being a Govtt company under the Companies Act,it ALSO DOES NOT DISCLOSE THE QUANTITY OF HWR used – although the proximate HW in tons required at the time of fuel load and criticality is known,and so are the HW losses in operation.
If the Future growth in Indian NPP is to be in HWR,then the HW supply is a bottleneck.This is a tragedy,as the HW is a 1 time load, with the fuel to attain criticality – and thereafter,to offset losses.It is shocking that the GOI has lost 100s of crores in HWP – when the HW has needs for intensive power and gas – and that is not available,and the GOI is at the mercy of the Grid and fertiliser plants.
IT IS TIME TO CHRONICLE THE SPECTACULAR SUCCESS OF THE PAEC AND PNFC,WITH A PERFECT SAFETY RECORD. OF CURSE, THE INDIAN NPP PROGRAM IS MUCH LARGER AND SO CHANCES OF ACCIDENTS AND DISASTERS IN TERMS OF NUMBER IS HIGHER - BUT THE PAEC RECORD - MIGHT BE THE BEST IN THE WORLD
CONTRAST EDF WITH PAEC
A 50 BILLION USD DEBT
A 31 BILLION USD LOSS,DUE TO BUYING POWER, IN BULK FROM EU, TO SELL AT LOWER RATES TO RETAIL, DUE TO POWER OUTAGES
A 11 BILLION USD LOSS DUE TO MACRON RETAIL ENERGY PRICE CAPS
26 OF ITS 56 BWR AND PHWR, ARE DOWN !
EDF ENGINEERS TINKERED WITH THE WESTINGHOUSE DESIGNS – WITH THE AIM OF REDUCING COSTS ! THAT CAUSED SCC (STRESS CORROSION CRACKS) IN PIPE WELD POINTS, AT THE ELBOW,WHICH ARE CLOSE TO THE NUKE CORE !
THESE PIPES ARE PART OF THE SIS – WHICH INJECT BORATED WATER INTO THE CORE,TO COOL DOWN * SHUT DOWN THE REACTOR ! THE MOST CRITICAL COMPONENT OF A STANDBY SECURITY MODE IN CASE THE PRIMARY COOLANT SYSTEM FAILS ! SCC IS NOT CAUSED BY THERMAL STRESS AND CANNOT BE DETECTED BY ULTRASOUND
EDF MISSED THIS DETECTION FOR > 10 YEARS
Pakistan’s Khushab nuclear site currently has four heavy water nuclear reactors dedicated to the production of plutonium for nuclear weapons, as well as a heavy water production plant. The facilities were built sequentially over the course of almost 30 years, with the most recent reactor being constructed in 2011. The reactors have slowly increased Pakistan’s supply of weapon-grade plutonium, which, after separation from the irradiated fuel at other sites, allows Pakistan to build more miniaturized, plutonium-based nuclear weapons that complement its existing highly enriched uranium nuclear weapons.
https://isis-online.org/isis-reports/detail/khushab-update/12#:~:text=Pakistan's%20Khushab%20nuclear%20site%20currently,reactor%20being%20constructed%20in%202011.
Examining accomplishments of Pak civil N programme | By Abdul Basit
https://pakobserver.net/examining-accomplishments-of-pak-civil-n-programme-by-abdul-basit/
Pakistan’s peaceful nuclear program is world-class, supported by the Nuclear Security Index Report. It has a 7-point increase in its score, making it the most improved country in terms of securing weapons-usable nuclear material. Pakistan’s long-standing support for peaceful use of nuclear technology, strategic restraint efforts, nuclear safety and security measures and stringent export control regime place it among the best nuclear programs in the world. The international community, including the US and the International Atomic Energy Agency, has repeatedly appreciated Pakistan’s growing nuclear credentials.
International Collaboration: Pakistan has engaged in international collaboration on nuclear research and development. It has participated in forums like the International Atomic Energy Agency and has sought assistance and support from other countries in developing its nuclear energy sector. On the regional level, Pakistan perceives the Indo-US nuclear deal as challenge to the strategic balance in South Asia and the comes despite India being a non-signatory of NPT. This has led to India entering into nuclear agreements with various countries, potentially undermining regional stability and the equilibrium of nuclear capabilities.
How Safe Is India's Railway Network? Here's What Experts Say in the Wake of the Odisha Crash
https://time.com/6284837/india-train-accident-odisha-railway-safety/
As India reels from one of its worst train disasters in two decades following a collision on Friday in Balasore, Odisha that killed at least 288 people and injured hundreds more, concerns are mounting over the safety of the country’s railways.
Experts tell TIME that while the Indian government has ramped up spending on railways in recent years, that money has mostly gone toward speed and comfort in the form of new trains. They say that more needs to be done in particular to improve the safety of thousands of older trains that are still in use in India, which has one of the world’s most extensive railway systems.
“Indian trains run on mixed tracks with both passenger and goods trains running on the same track,” Srinand Jha, a railways expert from the International Railway Journal, tells TIME. “The lines are mostly over-utilized and clogged, and because of this, the time available to carry out routine maintenance activity has been shrinking.”
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In recent years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has invested nearly $30 billion in the railways by manufacturing semi-high-speed trains, modern coaches and locomotives, and redeveloping the stations—part of a broader upgrade to transport infrastructure across the country in a bid to create a $5 trillion economy by 2025. Last year, Modi unveiled the new trains by announcing that “a nationwide campaign is underway to transform railways.”
But Jha says that these “big-ticket railway projects” have also led to an increase in rail travel and, in turn, a bigger need to improve the system through track maintenance and better signaling systems. “These aspects deserve greater attention,” he says.
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A report last year by India’s auditor general found that spending on basic railways maintenance had fallen since 2017, leading to serious lapses in safety.
On Monday, Vishal Tiwari, a lawyer in the Supreme Court, filed a legal petition advocating for an independent expert committee that would conduct a “time-bound probe into the accident.”
“Our petition is not only to investigate the train accident but also to strengthen the railway system through a review of risk and safety parameters in the railways,” Tiwari says. “It’s clear that judicial intervention is needed for transparency and impartiality so that such accidents do not happen due to the gross negligence of any government-run systems.”
Meanwhile, a new homegrown anti-collision technology unveiled in March called the Automatic Train Protection System, or KAVACH (“armor” in Hindi), could help prevent future accidents. “Had the device been on the train, this would not have happened,” Mamata Banerjee, a former railway minister and opposition leader, told local media.
Dear Sir
I hope everything is good at your end ,it’s been a little long time since I have posted any comments in this blog . Sir I was reading an article about how the space programs of SUPARCO( Space Agency ) was badly effected when Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was the President of Pakistan . In 1979 India did a nuclear test and this created a sense of insecurity and fear in the millitary and government of Pakistan . So to counter this nuclear test of India , Pakistani authorities decided to react by preparing and testing for its own nuclear bomb but it took many years for Pakistan to build its own nuclear assets . Sir Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto actually ordered the scientists and engineers working in SUPARCO to shift to Atomic Commission of Pakistan and prepare for the development of the nuclear program for the country . For that Pakistani scientists and engineers working at SUPACO were given training of how to develope nuclear bomb before they could practically work on it . It was the need of the time since Pakistan was a new country at that time and inorder to secure itself and protect its existence , the government of Pakistan had to take such decision which I and others can understand but Sir don’t you think Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto must have allowed the scientist and engineers who were working in SUPARCO to remain and work their and he should have collected a new group of PHDs from the country and should have given them training of building and developing a nuclear program instead of shifting and moving all the scientists and engineers from SUAPCO to Atomic Commission of Pakistan ? Don’t you think this decision of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was an emotional decision which lead to the downfall of SUAPCO?
Sir looking forward to your reply .
Thanks
#Pakistan and #China sign $4.8 billion 1200 MW #nuclear #power plant deal. Work on Chashma 5 project would begin immediately. China's support will help Pakistan make the transition away from reliance on #FossilFuels . #nuclearenergy #electricity
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/pakistan-china-sign-48-bln-nuclear-power-plant-deal-2023-06-20/
Pakistan and China signed a $4.8 billion deal on Tuesday to build a 1,200-megawatt nuclear power plant, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said, hailing the investment by a country that Pakistan views as its most dependable ally.
Work on the Chashma 5 project would begin immediately, Sharif said on state-run news channel PTV following the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between China National Nuclear Cooperation and Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission.
"Investment from China in this project to the tune of $4.8 billion sends a message loud and clear that Pakistan is a place where Chinese companies and investors continue to show their trust and faith," Sharif said.
The Chashma 5 project will be built in the central province of Punjab. China's support will help Pakistan make the transition away from reliance on fossil fuels.
Pakistan's total nuclear energy production capacity rose to 1,400 mw, when the country's sixth nuclear power plant opened two years ago. Located in the southern port city of Karachi, that 1,100 mw plant was also constructed with Chinese assistance.
Sharif, whose government is desperately struggling to stave off a balance of payments crisis, thanked the Chinese partners for offering a $100-million discount for the latest project.
It is unclear whether the new investment is part of the $65 billion that China has pledged in infrastructure building for Pakistan under its Belt and Road Initiative.
The new project was originally planned to start a couple of years ago, and Sharif expressed thanks to the Chinese side for not rescheduling costs despite the long delay. Instead, he said, the Chinese had disbursed an initial 30 billion Pakistani rupees ($104.53 million) to start the project.
Pakistan Expanding Nuclear Plant With New Hualong One Reactor
https://www.powermag.com/pakistan-expanding-nuclear-plant-with-new-hualong-one-reactor/
By Darrell Proctor is a senior associate editor for POWER (@POWERmagazine).
China continues to be a world leader in exporting its nuclear power technology. Chinese officials in Pakistan on June 20 signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for a $4.8 billion deal with Pakistan’s nuclear energy agency for construction of a new 1,200-MW reactor at the Chashma power complex.
The new unit will be China’s Hualong One, or HPR1000, pressurized water reactor technology.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said the country considers China its “most dependable ally.” Sharif, whose country is in the midst of an economic crisis and looking for outside investment in its energy sector, said construction of the Chashma 5 project, located in Punjab province, would begin immediately.
The Chashma complex has four CNP-300 reactors currently in operation, each with 325 MW of generation capacity. The units were developed by China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC). The first unit came online in 1991; the other units entered commercial operation in 2011, 2016, and 2017, respectively.
Chashma 5 will be built by CNNC subsidiary CNNC China Zhongyuan Engineering Corp., the company said.
Chinese officials recently announced that an HPR1000 has also been proposed for construction at the Bradwell site in the UK. Britain’s Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency said they have started a second, technical, phase of the assessment program for the HPR1000.
Chinese Investment
Sharif, speaking Tuesday on Pakistan’s state-run news channel PTV after the signing of the MOU between the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and Chinese officials, said, “Investment from China in this project to the tune of $4.8 billion sends a message loud and clear that Pakistan is a place where Chinese companies and investors continue to show their trust and faith.”
The prime minister originally brokered the project during his time as chief minister of Punjab, an office he held three times, most recently from 2013 to 2018. He was elected as Pakistan’s prime minister in April 2022.
Sharif has supported nuclear power as a way to move Pakistan away from fossil fuels. Its most recent nuclear facility, the 2,200-MW Karachi Nuclear Power Plant, also known as KANUPP, in the southern port city of Karachi, commissioned its two reactors in 2021 and 2022, respectively. That facility, featuring two Hualong One Generation III pressurized water reactors, also was built with financial backing from China.
Sharif on Tuesday said the Chashma 5 project was originally planned to start in 2021. He said Chinese officials did not raise the cost of the project from original estimates despite the delay. Officials on Tuesday said China has to date disbursed 30 billion Pakistani rupees ($104.53 million) to start the project.
“We are deeply obliged to [China] President Xi Jinping, and the Chinese leadership for their generous help to Pakistan,” Sharif said. He also recognized Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar for extending financial support to Pakistan’s government.
Pakistan for years has contended with power outages. Two of the worst incidents occurred in January 2021, and again in January of this year. In 2021, a fault at a power plant brought down the national grid, leading to calls for a massive overhaul of the country’s electricity transmission infrastructure.
A nationwide power outage on Jan. 30 of this year impacted all of Pakistan’s major cities and left millions of people without electricity.
Pakistan Signs $4.8 Billion Nuclear Power Plant Deal With China
https://www.voanews.com/a/pakistan-signs-4-8-billion-nuclear-power-plant-deal-with-china/7144967.html
Pakistan and China signed a $4.8 billion deal Tuesday to build what would be the seventh Chinese nuclear power plant in the South Asian nation.
The 1,200-megawatt project will be installed in the central Pakistani city of Chashma, where Beijing already has built four nuclear power generation units with a collective output of nearly 1,230 megawatts.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif oversaw Tuesday's signing of the memorandum of understanding between China National Nuclear Cooperation and the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission.
According to the agreement, the Chinese company will employ its HPR 1000 technology, known as HPR1000 or Hualong One, to construct the nuclear power unit. It will be the third facility in Pakistan to feature the HPR 1000, or pressurized water reactor technology.
"Investment from China in this project to the tune of $4.8 billion sends a loud and clear message that Pakistan is a place where Chinese companies and investors continue to show their trust and faith," Sharif said.
He thanked Beijing for offering a more than $100 million discount for what is named the Chashma 5 power plant. The work on the project was initially planned to start a couple of years ago, but Sharif said the Chinese partners had not rescheduled costs despite the long delay.
"This project is part of our energy security plan to diversify the energy mix with a focus on ensuring the provision of cheap electricity to the industry & relief to the common man,” the Pakistani prime minister wrote on Twitter after the ceremony.
Sharif's coalition government is struggling to deal with unprecedented economic challenges facing Pakistan, including a balance of payments crisis.
China has recently also constructed two nuclear power plants in the southern port city of Karachi, each with a 1,100-megawatt generation capacity.
Pakistani officials say the two Chinese-supplied third-generation Hualong One reactors, known as K2 and K3, cost roughly $10 billion. They are equipped with "advanced safety and foolproof security features" and have enhanced Pakistan's nuclear energy production to more than 3,500 megawatts.
"K2 and K3 are fully functional and supply 2,200 megawatts of electricity to the national grid. Similarly, nuclear power plants at Chashma are contributing more than 1,300 megawatts," a PAEC spokesman told VOA on Tuesday.
Canada helped Pakistan build its first nuclear power plant in 1972 in Karachi, producing about 80 megawatts of electricity. It is expected to be shut down soon after having served its purpose for about the full extent of the planned operation.
China maintains close defense and economic relations with staunch ally Pakistan. It has invested more than $20 billion in building road networks, power plants, and ports over the past decade under what is known as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC.
Officials in both countries say the collaboration, an extension of Beijing's global Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, has created tens of thousands of jobs and ended Pakistan's crippling energy crisis.
Two Titan submersible passengers were prominent science philanthropists in Pakistan
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-02100-y
Two of the passengers who died when the Titansubmersible imploded on its way to explore the wreckage of the Titanic in the North Atlantic belonged to a family that are prominent philanthropic funders of science in Pakistan.
Shahzada Dawood, and his son, Suleman Dawood, were part of the Dawood Foundation, which set up a university, girls’ school and museum, all with major focuses on science.
“The tragic loss of father and son is, first and foremost, a human tragedy and a tragedy for the family,” says environmental scientist Adil Najam, who also studies philanthropic giving in Pakistan. “We have also lost someone with a real, personal and abiding interest in science. It is a tremendous loss of a champion for science.”
“This is a huge tragedy for Pakistan,” adds Atta-ur-Rahman, a chemist at the University of Karachi and a former minister for science. “The [Dawood] family has made enormous contributions to education and science during the last five or six decades.”
The Dawood family’s foundation established the Dawood University of Engineering and Technology in Karachi; the Karachi School of Business and Leadership; the MagnifiScience Centre, Pakistan's first contemporary science museum also in Karachi. Dawood public school provides high quality science education for girls, Najam says.
Members of the Dawood family posted a statement to the foundation website about the deaths of Shahzada and Suleman. “We are truly grateful to all those involved in the rescue operations. The immense love and support we receive continues to help us endure this unimagineable loss.” The statement also said: “At this time, we are unable to receive calls and request that support, condolences and prayers be messaged instead.”
Both Rahman and physicist Pervez Hoodbhoy of the Black Hole Institute, a science and cultural centre in Islamabad, say that the Dawood Foundation is a rare example of much-needed science-philanthropy. Many young people are trying to leave Pakistan because of an economic crisis and a lack of opportunities. Around 800,000 people left in 2022 to seek work abroad. Between 400 and 750 people from Pakistan, as well as Egypt and Syria died last week when a boat capsized off the Mediterranean Sea on its way from Libya to Europe, according to media reports.
The Dawood family foundation has tried to address these problems by creating opportunities for science education. Rahman adds that there is much more that needs to be done. “We need to rethink our national policies, so that we can use this huge pool of talent for our own socio-economic development,” he says.
Top European Research Labs Select Three teams of Secondary school students-- One Each Netherlands, Pakistan and the US--For Own Accelerator Beam Experiments at CERN and DESY
https://home.cern/news/press-release/cern/three-teams-secondary-school-pupils-netherlands-pakistan-and-usa-win-10th
Geneva and Hamburg, 28 June 2023. In 2023, for the second time in the history of the Beamline for Schools competition, the evaluation committee selected three winning teams. The team “Myriad Magnets” from the Philips Exeter Academy, in Exeter, United States, and the team “Particular Perspective”, which brings together pupils from the Islamabad College for Boys, the Supernova School in Islamabad, the Cadet College in Hasanabdal, the Siddeeq Public School in Rawalpindi and the Cedar College in Karachi, Pakistan, will travel to CERN, Geneva, in September 2023 to perform the experiments that they proposed. The team “Wire Wizards” from the Augustinianum school in Eindhoven, Netherlands, will be hosted at DESY (Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron in Hamburg, Germany) to carry out its experiment.
Beamline for Schools (BL4S) is a physics competition open to secondary school pupils from all around the world. The participants are invited to prepare a proposal for a physics experiment that can be undertaken at the beamline of a particle accelerator. A beamline is a facility that provides high-energy fluxes of subatomic particles that can be used to conduct experiments in different fields, including fundamental physics, material science and medicine.
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“Congratulations to this year’s winners – may they have good beams, collect interesting data and generally have the time of their lives,” says Christoph Rembser, a CERN physicist at the ATLAS experiment and one of the founders of Beamline for Schools. “Every year I am astonished by how many young people submit very creative, interesting proposals. In 2014, we weren’t sure at all whether this competition would work. Ten years and 16 000 participants later, I am proud to say that it is obviously a resounding success.”
The fruitful collaboration between CERN and DESY started in 2019 during the shutdown period of the CERN accelerators. This year, the German laboratory will host its fifth team of winners.
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The Pakistan team “Particular Perspective” will measure in detail the beam composition of the T10 beamline of the CERN Proton Synchrotron accelerator. The experiment set-up they designed will make it possible to differentiate between different particle species and measure their intensity.
“I am grateful to BL4S for having provided me with an opportunity to represent my country, Pakistan, and its budding community of aspiring physicists. This is a chance for us to experience physics at the highest level and will inspire people with interests similar to ours to reach greater heights,” says Muhammad Salman Tarar from the “Particular Perspective” team.
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The “Wire Wizards” team’s experiment focuses on detector development. The Dutch students designed and built a multi-wire proportional chamber (MWPC), a gas detector able to measure the position of a particle interacting with it, and they plan to characterise it using the electron beam available at DESY.
“The BL4S competition provides us with a unique educational experience that will be a highlight in our time as students,” says Leon Verreijt from the “Wire Wizards” team.
The winners have been selected by a committee of CERN and DESY scientists from a shortlist of 27 particularly promising experiments. All the teams in the shortlist will be awarded special prizes. In addition, one team will be recognised for the most creative video and 10 teams for the quality of physics outreach activities they are organising in their local communities, taking advantage of the knowledge gained by taking part in BL4S.
China positions Pakistan as nuclear power export springboard
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Energy/China-positions-Pakistan-as-nuclear-power-export-springboard2
Experts say Beijing has something to prove with $4.8bn project in struggling nation
KARACHI -- China is accelerating its civil nuclear cooperation with Pakistan, as it seeks export customers in a market dominated by Russia and the West.
A nuclear energy deal Pakistan signed with China in June, reportedly worth $4.8 billion, might appear a curious move on Beijing's part. China has already had a bumpy ride in Pakistan's power business, where coal-operated stations have suffered from a debilitating cash crunch amid the South Asian country's foreign exchange shortage.
Yet experts say the new arrangement is more about China's strategic ambitions than economics.
"China wants to continue to build nuclear power plants in Pakistan to build up a track record for Chinese industry to enter other, perhaps more lucrative and less-captive nuclear power markets," said Mark Hibbs, nonresident senior fellow for the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Under the deal, China will build a 1,200-megawatt plant at the Chashma nuclear power complex in central Pakistan. It will feature what Beijing says is its first indigenous civil nuclear reactor, the Hualong One, a third-generation pressurized water reactor jointly developed by the China National Nuclear Corporation and the China General Nuclear Power Group.
The new unit will be the fifth at the complex, which was built with Chinese assistance and currently feeds 1,230 MW to the national grid.
China previously supplied this type of reactor to a nuclear power station in the southern port city of Karachi. Construction of two units -- which came online in the last couple of years, adding a combined 2,200 MW -- roughly coincided with the setup of the first Hualong Ones in China, at Fuqing.
Including domestic projects, China has become one of the most prolific builders of nuclear plants. But beyond Pakistan, its export plans are largely aspirational, with officials having suggested that by 2030 China could build 30 overseas reactors in countries participating in its Belt and Road Initiative. Last year, China signed a deal to build a nuclear facility in another economically troubled country, Argentina.
"This project is part of our energy security plan to diversify the energy mix with a focus on ensuring the provision of cheap electricity to the industry & relief to the common man," Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif tweeted on June 20 following the nuclear deal, saying the project "will be built with Chinese investment of $3.48 billion."
The prime minister also said China provided a "discount" of $100 million despite facing delays during the tenure of the previous Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government, led by ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Zongyuan Zoe Liu, a fellow for international political economy at the Council on Foreign Relations, said China does not have much experience exporting nuclear power plants and that President Xi Jinping prioritized foreign reactor sales only after his 2021 pledge at the United Nations General Assembly to stop building overseas coal-fired power projects.
"In this context, it does not make practical sense for Chinese nuclear reactor exporters to charge a high markup," she said. "What is more important for China is to demonstrate to the world that it has indigenous technology for nuclear reactors that are safe, reliable and affordable. This is, in the long run, in China's interest to compete with other nuclear power exporters in the global markets."
Carnegie's Hibbs said the Hualong One "will likely become the standard light-water reactor for China's continued nuclear power development, but also a flagship for China's influence in the global marketplace and in multilateral governance over nuclear power."
China positions Pakistan as nuclear power export springboard
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Energy/China-positions-Pakistan-as-nuclear-power-export-springboard2
Chinese cooperation has been and will be instrumental in helping Pakistan overcome chronic energy woes. Beijing has helped build energy facilities, mostly coal-fired power plants and hydropower projects, under its $50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the Pakistani component of the Belt and Road Initiative.
But costly fuel imports, including coal for BRI power plants, coupled with rupee devaluation, have weighed heavily on Pakistan's dollar reserves and contributed to a balance of payments crisis that forced it to strike an 11th-hour bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund on Friday.
Pakistan defaulted on dues to Chinese-operated coal plants totaling $1.5 billion. The plants have been unable to import coal, and thus many have stopped operating. New coal power projects have also been shelved, apart from a recently re-approved one in the port city of Gwadar, the centerpiece of CPEC.
Nevertheless, Hibbs explained that "China has a supply chain and workforce in place in Pakistan for Hualong One, and without new foreign contracts elsewhere, China wants to keep these assets active."
Aside from the economic question marks, however, China's cooperation with Pakistan also raises eyebrows among the Nuclear Suppliers Group, a voluntary organization of 48 countries that conduct civilian nuclear trade under strict guidelines. Pakistan is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and conforms to only facility-specific safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency -- as opposed to the full-scope safeguards that allow the IAEA to inspect both civil and military nuclear facilities required for nuclear trade.
China says that its ongoing exports to Pakistan are "grandfathered" by agreements dating back years before China's entry into the NSG in 2004, although NSG members assert that exports after entry should conform to the full-scope rule.
Athar Osama PIF Facebook post
Today we embark upon a 6-month long learning journey with 60 Pakistani Teachers and 6 Indonesian Teacher Trainers on Holistic Science Teaching.
This is an innovative approach to Teaching Science in a manner that is connected with other branches of knowledge such as History, Philosophy, Ethics, Religion and the Liberal Arts being piloted, to our knowledge, for the first time in the Muslim World.
Over 3 years, we will 6 workshops in Pakistan, Indonesia, and the Arab World - very different cultures, education systems, languages but the same objective: Train Teachers to create Curious Classrooms!
6-8 Grade Science Teachers may register to attend a future workshop at
http://pif.org.pk/scienceteaching/
World Science Collaborative Ltd, in collaboration with, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), The Aga Khan University – Institute of Education Development (AKU-IED), South East Asian Ministerial Organisation (SEAMEO), Indonesia, and Qatar University, Qatar, as well as partners Khawarzimi Science Society (KSS), Lahore; Pakistan Innovation Foundation, Pakistan, and STEMx – STEM School for the World, Islamabad presents a unique workshop to enable teachers to explore and learn how to teach science holistically.
In our society, teaching of science is often extremely siloed and compartmentalised whereby the science teacher delivers the content in the classroom but does not relate what is being taught to the real world nor brings forth (or draws upon) the diverse body of knowledge available in disciplines such as history, philosophy, religion and ethics. In doing so, he/she runs the risk, at the very least, of leaving the scientific learning unconnected, or much worse, leaving the students more confused than informed.
It is absolutely critical, therefore, to teach science holistically i.e. connect the learning in the classroom with the real world, for example, by:
* Bringing together knowledge from diverse sources and disciplines such as science, history, philosophy, religion, and ethics?
* Using hands-on experiments and play to bring inspiration and insight in the science classroom?
* Planning lessons that adequately address the curious minds of students and encourage critical inquiry?
* Addressing Big Philosophical Questions that stem from scientific discoveries such as Big Bang, Multiverses, Genetics, Evolution, Artificial Intelligence, etc.
The Holistic Teaching of Science Workshop is OPEN to ALL Teachers of Science in Middle School (Grades 6-8) at any public, private, or religious (madrassa) school who struggles with teaching modern science in the classroom and wants to do better.
The Holistic Science Teaching Online (Hybrid) Workshop is 1 of 6 Workshops that will be carried out in Pakistan, Indonesia, and Qatar between Dec 2022 and July 2025.
US holds title for world's most powerful military, Pakistan ranks 7th, Where does India stand?
https://www.livemint.com/news/world/us-holds-title-for-worlds-most-powerful-military-pakistan-ranks-7th-where-does-india-stand-11689136456322.html
Pakistan has entered the top 10 of the most powerful militaries in the world, securing the seventh spot. Japan and France have dropped to eighth and ninth respectively. The United States, Russia, and China remain the top three.
According to Global Firepower, a prominent data website specializing in defence-related information, the United States possesses the most powerful military force worldwide.
Russia and China follow closely in second and third place, respectively, while India secures the fourth position. The recently released 2023 Military Strength list, which evaluates over 60 factors, also highlights nations with comparatively weaker military forces such as Bhutan and Iceland.
The assessment by Global Firepower takes into account various criteria, including the number of military units, financial resources, logistical capabilities, and geographical considerations, to determine each nation's overall score.
"Our unique, in-house formula allows for smaller (and) more technologically-advanced nations to compete with larger (and) lesser-developed powers… special modifiers, in the form of bonuses and penalties, are applied to further refine the list which is compiled annually. Trends do not necessarily indicate a declining power as changes to the GFP formula can also account for this."
The report lists 145 countries and also compares each nation's year-on-year ranking changes.
Here are the 10 nations with the most powerful militaries in the world:
United States
Russia
China
India
United Kingdom
South Korea
Pakistan
Japan
France
Italy
Here are the 10 nations with the least powerful militaries in the world:
Bhutan
Benin
Moldova
Somalia
Liberia
Suriname
Belize
Central African Republic
Iceland
Sierra Leone
The top four nations remain as they were in the 2022 Global Firepower list.
In a shift from the previous year's rankings, the United Kingdom has advanced from eighth to fifth place in terms of military strength. South Korea retains its sixth position from last year.
https://twitter.com/spectatorindex/status/1678023296833720322?s=20
Notably, Pakistan has entered the top 10, securing the seventh spot. Conversely, Japan and France, which held the fifth and seventh positions respectively last year, have dropped to eighth and ninth this year.
Despite ongoing conflicts and Russia's "special operation" invasion of Ukraine in February of the previous year, Russia maintains its second position. The rankings reflect the evolving dynamics and complexities of global military capabilities and highlight the continuous assessment of various factors influencing military strength.
Pakistan’s PM Shehbaz Sharif launches US$3.5 billion Chinese-designed nuclear energy project
https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3227776/pakistans-pm-sharif-launches-us35-billion-chinese-designed-nuclear-energy-project
The two countries had already signed an agreement to construct a state-of-the-art Hualong One reactor
China also gave US$5 billion loan to Pakistan to help it unlock a bailout from the IMF
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday launched the construction of a 1,200-megawatt Chinese-designed nuclear energy project, which will be built at a cost of US$3.5 billion as part of the government efforts to generate more clean energy in the Islamic nation.
The ceremony to mark the project’s start comes less than a month after Pakistan signed an agreement with China’s National Nuclear Corporation Overseas in the capital, Islamabad, to construct a Hualong One reactor – a third-generation nuclear reactor and is considered safer because of the latest security features.
Pakistan and China are long-time allies. Pakistan’s relations with Beijing are so close that its leadership calls China their “Iron Brother.” China is also building roads, bridges, power plants, and railways to link its far west with the Chinese-built port of Gwadar on the Indian Ocean.
China Begins Construction of Pakistan's Largest Nuclear Power Plant
https://www.voanews.com/a/china-begins-construction-of-pakistan-s-largest-nuclear-power-plant-/7181016.html
Pakistan held a groundbreaking ceremony Friday for what will be its largest civil nuclear power plant — constructed by China — that will contribute 1,200 megawatts of electricity daily to the national grid and is estimated to cost at least $3.5 billion.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and senior Chinese officials attended the televised event in the central city of Chashma, dubbed the birthplace of China-Pakistan nuclear energy cooperation.
Over the past 30 years, Beijing has installed four nuclear power generation units in Chashma, collectively generating about 1,300 megawatts, with China providing enriched uranium for fuel.
"This mutual cooperation to promote clean, efficient, and comparatively cheaper energy is a gift of friendship between the two countries and a model for other countries to emulate," Sharif said at the ceremony.
The plant, known as Chashma-5, or C-5, will feature what China says is its domestically developed third-generation pressurized water nuclear technology, the Hualong One or HPR1000, with "advanced safety and foolproof security features."
Raja Ali Raza, the head of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, said the nuclear plant project will be completed by 2030.
"C-5 will be Pakistan's largest generation-III plus nuclear power project," Raza said. "This project has brought PAEC one step closer to its envisaged goal of production of 8,800 megawatts electric cheap and clean energy."
Beijing has previously supplied the HPR1000 technology for two nuclear power stations, each with a 1,100-megawatt generation capacity, built and operationalized in the last couple of years in the southern port city of Karachi, enhancing Pakistan's nuclear energy production to more than 3,500 megawatts a day.
Analysts see China's accelerated civil nuclear cooperation with Pakistan as part of efforts to globally find more lucrative buyers for its HPR1000 reactors developed by state-owned China National Nuclear Corporation or CNNC, the country's second-largest nuclear power producer company.
"HPR1000 is a homegrown nuclear technology of CNNC and a flagship of China's advanced equipment manufacturing," Yu Jianfeng, the CNNC chairman, told the ceremony. He noted that more than 17 units of HPR1000 are currently under construction in China.
"Today's groundbreaking for the C-5 project is a significant milestone for HPR1000's global journey and a new start for the China-Pakistan nuclear energy cooperation," Yu stated. "Our cooperation in nuclear energy has become an integral part of the China-Pakistan all-weather strategic cooperative partnership and a shining example of international nuclear energy cooperation."
Under its global Belt and Road Initiative, Beijing also has built and put into commercial operation 14 mostly coal-fired power plants in Pakistan in the last 10 years, with a total installed capacity of 8,000 megawatts daily.
The projects are part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, which has also built road networks, highways, ports, and industrial zones with direct Chinese investment and "soft loans," expected to increase to about $62 billion by 2030 when the mega undertaking is due to be complete.
Critics blame CPEC for contributing to Pakistan's deepening economic troubles and depleting foreign exchange reserves, making it difficult for the country to catch up with its foreign debt repayments.
Pakistan owes more than $1.3 billion (350 billion rupees) to Chinese power plants. The amount keeps growing, and China has refused to defer or restructure the payment and CPEC debt repayments.
Pakistan sets up center to boost agricultural growth with $500 million Saudi assistance
https://www.arabnews.pk/node/2333736/pakistan
The center will work in collaboration with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and China on various projects
It aims to enhance modern agro-farming in Pakistan by utilizing over 9 million hectares of uncultivated state land
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has established a Land Information and Management System, Center of Excellence ((LIMS-CoE) to enhance modern agro-farming by utilizing over 9 million hectares of uncultivated state land, a senior official said on Thursday, adding that Saudi Arabia provided an initial $500 million investment to set up the facility.
Pakistan, an agriculture-based economy contributing 23 percent to the GDP and employing 37.4 percent of the labor force, faces recurrent economic hardships. Currently, the productivity remains below par, with a decreasing cultivation area, a population-production gap, and agricultural imports amounting to $10 billion.
According to the World Food Program, around 36.9 percent of Pakistanis are food insecure, with 18.3 percent experiencing severe food crises. The country faces a shortfall of 4 million metric tons in wheat production against a total demand of 30.8 million metric tons, while cotton production has fallen by 40 percent to around 5 million bales in the last decade.
“As far as the high efficiency irrigation system is concerned, Saudi Arabia has already given us [Pakistan] $500 million,” Maj. Gen. Shahid Nazeer, who heads the LIMS-CoE, told reporters at a briefing on Thursday.
“Aimed at enhancing modern agro-farming utilizing over 9 million hectares of uncultivated waste state land, LISM-CoE has been established under the Director General Strategic Projects of Pakistan Army.”
The state-of-the-art system will revolutionize means to steer agricultural development through real-time information about land, crops, weather, water resource and pest-handling under one roof, according to the official.
The center will work in collaboration with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and China on various agri projects to enhance Pakistan’s exports.
“In the next 3-4 days, a very high-powered Saudi delegation is coming to Pakistan to explore this kind of investment in four major sectors including agriculture, mines and minerals, information technology (IT) and defense production,” he said, adding this would be done under the umbrella of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) that was recently established to revive the Pakistani economy.
Nazeer said the LIMS-CoE was aimed at ensuring food security and optimizing agricultural production in Pakistan through innovative technologies and precise, sustainable agricultural practices based on agro-ecological potential of the land, while ensuring the well-being of rural communities and environment preservation.
“The main objectives of the center included consolidation and reclamation of uncultivated waste land, optimal decision; what and where to grow, development of a master plan for modern farming, implementation of state-of-the-art agriculture management practices, practicing agro-intelligence for digital and precision agriculture, better utilization of technology to enhance yield and effective decision support system,” he explained.
The LIMS-CoE recently initiated modern agri-farming projects in Punjab, according to the official. Efforts were being made to use certified hybrid seeds with concurrent development involving joint ventures with multi-national companies, which could pay rich dividends. In agriculture and gardening, a hybrid seed is produced by deliberately cross-pollinating plants that are genetically diverse.
“Hybrid seed gives 30-50 percent more yield, world is using 80 percent hybrid seed, while Pakistan currently uses only 8 percent of hybrid seed,” he added.
NORI’s becomes 1st govt hospital to treat cancer thru cyber-knife - Pakistan - Business Recorder
https://www.brecorder.com/news/40226780
ISLAMABAD: The Nuclear Medicine, Oncology and Radiotherapy Institute (NORI) Hospital, being run by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, has become the first public sector hospital in the country to treat cancer through cyber-knife method.
The facility was inaugurated by Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Mariano Grossi, here the other day. Speaking on the occasion, the IAEA DG said the global nuclear technology watchdog intended to expand cooperation to Pakistan in different fields, especially in its efforts to provide the latest treatment facilities to cancer patients.
The IAEA DG hoped that the newly-inaugurated Cyber knife facility was multiplying theuropic capacities in Pakistan to treat cancer patients. He said the IAEA had launched a global programme called, “Rays of Hope” more than a year ago, which was aimed at increasing the availability of radiotherapy facilities in particular in developing countries, with a huge deficit in this area.
Rafael said that ‘Rays of Hope’ project was aimed at bringing radiotherapy facilities for those who did not have it. “Pakistan has top-notch facilities in NORI and wonderful professionals to treat cancer patients, while many other countries lack such facilities,” he said, adding, “This hospital in Pakistan is equipped with the latest technology and has the potential to even extend this facility to the other countries.”
Referring to the example of Africa, he said that 70 percent population in that country lacked access to radiotherapy facilities. “Although we have been focusing on Covid-19 pandemic in the past but cancer is one of those diseases which are tremendously affecting largest population globally. IAEA is trying to correct such imbalances to improve the healthcare facilities in the world,” he added.
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