Pakistani PM lays foundation stone of Bhasha dam

Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani Tuesday laid foundation stone of the US 12 billion dollar Diamir Bhasha dam that would generate 4500 MW electricity and store over 8 Million Acre Feet of water to meet country''s growing power and irrigation needs. The dam, world''s highest concrete dam on River Indus would produce 19 billion units of electricity annually and enhance life of Tarbela Dam by over 35 years. Diamer Bhasha Dam will have 4500 megawatt generation capacity and it will store 8.1 million acre feet of water. It will be completed in seven to eight years at an estimated cost of 12 billion dollars. The dam will generate electricity worth about two billion dollars per year and recover its cost in about seven years. It will be the highest Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) dam in the world.