SOUTH WAZIRISTAN, Pakistan: The Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) has restored the Gomal Zam Hydropower Station to its full generation capacity of 17.4 megawatts (MW) after successfully rehabilitating a generating unit that had remained out of service for eight years.
The restored unit has been synchronised with the national grid following the successful completion of technical, operational and safety tests, allowing the hydropower station to resume full-capacity electricity generation.
🚨🇵🇰 — The Water and Power Development Authority has restored the Gomal Zam Hydropower Station to its full generating capacity. Unit 1, rehabilitated by a joint venture at a cost of Rs. 359.5 million, was successfully synchronized with the national grid on June 25. After… pic.twitter.com/Y8jBGorjUK
— Pakistan OSINT 🇵🇰 🔎 🛰️ ⚔️ (@Pak_Osint) June 25, 2026
Station Returns to Full Output
According to Wapda, both generating units at the station stopped operating in October 2016 because of a major technical fault.
One unit was repaired and returned to service in June 2018, restoring half of the station’s installed capacity.
However, the second unit remained offline because of the complexity of the repairs, limiting electricity generation to 8.7MW over the past eight years.
With the completion of the rehabilitation work, the station is once again operating at its full installed capacity of 17.4MW.
Wapda described the restoration as a significant milestone for Pakistan’s hydropower sector, saying it would increase the supply of low-cost, environmentally friendly electricity to the national grid while improving power reliability in the southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, particularly the Dera Ismail Khan Division.
Rehabilitation Completed Ahead of Schedule
The authority launched the rehabilitation project in April 2026 for Rs359.5 million.
According to Wapda, the project was completed within 80 days, ahead of schedule, and the repaired generating unit was successfully recommissioned on June 25, 2026.
The Gomal Zam Hydropower Station is connected to the national grid through the 132-kilovolt South Waziristan Lower-Tank transmission line and is capable of producing around 90.9 million units of low-cost, clean electricity annually.
Officials said the restored facility would help improve electricity supply in South Waziristan, Tank, Dera Ismail Khan and other remote parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while increasing the share of renewable energy in Pakistan’s power mix and reducing reliance on imported fuels.
Strategic Water Resource Project
The Gomal Zam Dam is one of Pakistan’s major multi-purpose water resource projects. Construction began in 2002 but experienced delays because of security challenges, financial constraints and administrative issues before the main structure was completed in 2013.
The dam has a gross water storage capacity of about 1.14 million acre-feet and provides irrigation water to nearly 191,000 acres of farmland, supporting agricultural production in the region.
Standing approximately 133 metres high, the project also plays an important role in flood control, water conservation and regional socio-economic development.
Located in the Kar Kanra area of Wana tehsil in Lower South Waziristan on the eastern bank of the Gomal River, the project is built on land traditionally inhabited by the Zali Khel clan of the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe.
Energy experts described the restoration of the hydropower station as an important step for Pakistan’s renewable energy sector, saying it would strengthen the national grid while providing long-term economic and environmental benefits.
