Twenty-four engineers successfully completed a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) two-week hydro-power operations and maintenance training course and received completion certificates during a ceremony today at the Serena Hotel in Islamabad.

The participants included engineers from the Tarbela, Ghazi Barotha, Mangla, Warsak, Chashma, and Renala Khurd power plants, and the Water and Power Development Agency (WAPDA) as well as female engineers from engineering universities in Islamabad.  Mr. Badar ul Munir Murtaza from WAPDA, USAID Energy Office Director Dr. Michael Curtis, and the Energy Policy Program Chief of Party Jim Hicks presided over the ceremony.

"The training you have gone through complements the financial and technical support extended by the U.S. government to support Pakistan's efforts to increase power generation, improve energy efficiency and transmission, and policy reform efforts," said Dr. Curtis during his address to the participants.  Complementing USAID's recent efforts to upgrade obsolete equipment and introduce state-of-the-art technology at Gomal Zam, Satpara, Tarbela, and Mangla dams, this training program will assist power generation companies with implementing best practices according to international standards.  The training will result in improved power plant operations and maintenance practices by providing the engineers with an improved skillset and as a result, improve energy services in Pakistan.

As part of its energy sector assistance program, the U.S. government through USAID has funded renovations at Tarbela, Jamshoro, Mangla, Guddu, and Muzzafargharh power plants; aided in the completion of Gomal Zam and Satpara dams and helped improve power distribution throughout Pakistan.  These projects have already added more than 1,000 megawatts of power to Pakistan's national grid, with a cumulative target of 1,400 megawatts by the end of 2014 - enough to benefit approximately 16 million people throughout Pakistan.