Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday inaugurated two coal-fired power plants in Tharparkar (also known as Thar), a district in Sindh province, with a capacity of 1,650 megawatts (MW) of electricity generation, saying the projects would turn the desert into an "economic hub."

The direct investment of the projects is $3.53 billion and it is constructed and operated by Shanghai Electric Power Company Ltd, a Chinese electricity company.

By April 30, power turbines would be installed at the projects to generate electricity, which would be supplied to the rest of the country through transmission lines. Once the projects are put into use, the production of coal-based electricity in Thar will increase to 3,300MW, according to local news outlets.

Addressing the launch event, the prime minister said it was a "moment of celebration" for the country that the Tharparkar desert was getting a "source of basic facilities for life" and "the journey of progress will spread across the country and will strengthen the national economy."

He also expressed gratitude to the Chinese government for extending support to Pakistan in carrying out development projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and vowed that the government would put in all efforts to materialize CPEC projects, with the agriculture sector as its next phase.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said the power projects could be materialized as the federal government and the Sindh government "worked in harmony to facilitate the masses."

He also praised the cooperation between Pakistan and China in carrying out development projects, saying CPEC projects had resulted in the "improvement of health and educational facilities."

Pang Chunxue, the charge d 'Affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan, said this year marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the CPEC, an important pilot project of the BRI. The CPEC has laid a sound foundation for the industrialization and modernization of Pakistan, and China will continue all possible cooperation with Pakistan in the field of development and progress, Pang added.

Chinese project manager Meng Donghai said that the operation of the projects will help reduce Pakistan's electricity bills, provide more stable electricity and ease the country's urgent need for energy imports.

Shanghai Electric Power Company Ltd is the executing agency of the projects, while the Pakistan energy ministry (Power Division) is the coordinating ministry and Private Power and Infrastructure Board is the supervising agency.