As a leading international engineering contractor and service provider, the China Machinery Engineering Corporation helps build ties between Pakistan and China through its high-quality power projects, according to the company.

Over the past 30 years, the corporation has seen robust growth in Pakistan by committing itself to such large national projects as power stations and providing various kinds of machinery and equipment, including hydraulic hoisting device.

These projects have had an incredible impact on the development of the country's power industry and the local quality of life, according to the company.

One example is the Guddu Thermal Power Plant, China's first international cooperative project based on the seller's export credit, which is a loan provided by the Import-Export Bank of China to finance the export of high-tech, mechanical and electronic equipment as well as related services.

In 1983, the company delivered the plant's fuel-fired Generating Unit 4, which has a capacity of 210 megawatts.

Located in Sindh in the southeastern region of Pakistan, the plant consists of four turbo generator units and four combined-cycle gas and steam turbine units that altogether have a gross capacity of 1,040 megawatts."It marked China's first foray into the thermal power market overseas," said the project manager.

"Through the project, CMEC has made a strategic shift from an industrial and trade company to a key player in the nation's global project contracting sector."

Now, the Guddu Thermal Power Plant has become a landmark of Pakistan and a must-see destination for visiting foreign leaders.

Another is the Saif Combined-Cycle Power Plant, completed in 2011. It is the world's first power plant with a dual-fuel 6FA gas turbine unit.

"The unit maintains a strict safety standard and operates very efficiently," said a representative of the company.

Other projects include the Jamshoro power plant, built in 1991, the Muzaffargarh power plant, built in 1995, and the Ghazi-Barotha hydropower plant, in 2002.

The company will also construct the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Plant, the largest in the country.

It is being hailed as the "Three Gorges Dam of Pakistan".

The hydropower plant has the largest underground works in Asia and the largest surge shaft in the world.

In addition to offering qualified projects and services, the corporation is also providing lots of skilled workers, which will inject wealth into local markets, according to the company.

The company said it will strive to deliver more high-quality projects in a bid to further deepen the friendship between the two countries.

Founded in 1978, China Machinery Engineering Corporation is China's first large State-owned corporation to integrate engineering, contracting and foreign trade.

To date, the company has extended its business to more than 150 countries and regions in the fields of international contracting and foreign trade.

As of the end of 2011, the company had completed three 600-megawatt supercritical coal-fired power plants worldwide.

zhuanti@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 05/31/2013 page23)