LAHORE – Warsak Dam, constructed at a cost of $109.35 million, has provided benefits worth $5.8 billion to nation so far, said an official of Wapda.

“The canal system of Warsak Dam Project is irrigating some 119,000 acres of land, and has, thus, contributed $2.3 billion to the national economy since its commissioning. Similarly, Warsak Hydel Power Station has so far generated about 40 billion units of electricity, earning a revenue of $3.5 billion,” he added.
According to the Wapda, Warsak Dam is located on Kabul River about 30 kilometer
North-West of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. It is a mass concrete gravity dam with a height of 250 feet and length 460 feet. The project was constructed in 1960 under Colombo Plan, and was financed by the Government of Canada.
In phase-I, dam, irrigation tunnel and four power generating units, each of 40 megawatt (MW) capacity, were constructed at a cost of $98.75 million, while in phase-II, two more units, each of 41.5 MW capacity, were installed in 1980-81 at a cost of $10.6 million, thus raising total installed capacity of the project to 243 MW.
After completing about 50 years, the generating units of Warsak Hydel Power Station have deteriorated despite extensive repair and maintenance due to heavy sediments in Kabul River. At present, Wapda is engaged in rehabilitation of the project. In addition, Wapda has also decided to construct another underground powerhouse of 375 MW at Warsak. Resultantly, the generation capacity of Warsak Dam Project will rise to 618 MW. 
Financial arrangements for construction of the underground power house are being negotiated with various financial institutions. There are strong indications on the part of the financial institutions that they would provide about 75pc funds for construction of the underground powerhouse.