Saudi development fund is financing Pakistan’s 800 MW hydropower dam: The Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) — a government institution that provides loans for development projects — has signed off on a USD 240 mn soft loan to finance Pakistan’s Mohmand Hydropower Dam Project, Saudi Press Agency reported on Friday. The project is expected to cost USD 2.17 bn and will begin operations in July 2024, according to Power Technology.

Project goals: The dam will have the capacity to generate 800 MW of renewable electricity and will be able to store around 1.6 mn cubic meters of water, providing a sustainable source of water for the country, SPA said. Water stored in the dam’s reservoir will be used to expand Pakistan’s cropping area to 9.2k hectares from the current 1.5k hectares, while also protecting the region from seasonal floods.

Other funds are pitching in: The OPEC Fund loaned Pakistan USD 72 mn last June to finance the construction of the dam, according to their website.

Pakistan floods have intensified due to climate change: Pakistan declared a state of national emergency last August after months of extreme rain brought on by global warming, with floods submerging entire villages and causing the death of some 1.5k people. Researchers determined that scorching heat that spring had been 30 times as likely to occur because of greenhouse emissions. At the loss and damage fund discussions in Luxor last month, Egypt’s lead climate negotiator Mohamed Nasr highlighted that the vast majority of funding channeled to Pakistan in the wake of its deadly floods last year were loans, rather than grants, which grow the country’s debt burden.

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