Chinese wind power project under CPEC uplifts economic life: Adil Ashraf
by Chen Lei
“As far as local people are concerned, their economic life has been uplifted due to this wind power project,” Adil Ashraf, CFO of Three Gorges Wind Farm Pakistan Limited, who has been engaged in wind power project under China Pakistan Economic Corridor(CPEC) for more than four years, told China Economic Net(CEN).
Last December, China awarded "Outstanding Employee" to 18 Pakistani employees who participated in the construction of projects under CPEC, like Gwadar Port and others of energy and infrastructure sector. Adil Ashraf was among them.
In a recent exclusive interview with CEN, Adil Ashraf shared his experience of working on a wind power project under CPEC and expressed his views on Pak-China cooperation in clean energy.
Adil Ashraf is being interviewed by China Economic Net. [Photo/China Economic Net]
“Working for Chinese company makes me more focused”
Chinese President Xi Jinping made a state visit to Pakistan in 2015 when the historical program of CPEC was officially launched. Adil Ashraf was extremely impressed and excited at that time, thus in 2016 when he got the opportunity to be part of CPEC project through one of the world’s largest renewable energy companies, he immediately chose to join it.
Having worked with colleagues of various nationalities for several companies, he said frankly that working for a Chinese enterprise is still different. "China Three Gorges (CTG) is actually an excellent company in terms of processes and procedures. It takes care of employees, and as far as the vision and mission are concerned, this is fantastic as compared with other companies in Pakistan.”
In his eyes, Chinese colleagues’ friendliness also moved him a lot in their daily contacts. “What I was impressed about working with this company is the adherence to the processes and policies, and the discipline that I have found in the Chinese colleagues that impressed me a lot.”
In terms of the changes that took place in him, he said that “It feels like I'm now more focused and detail-oriented after working with a Chinese company in Pakistan.”
Hard works will always pay off. In December last year, Adil Ashraf has been awarded the Outstanding Employee of CPEC for his valuable contributions to CPEC Phase-1 projects by the Embassy of China in Pakistan and the CPEC Authority.
Adil Ashraf wins the award of “Outstanding Employee”. [Photo provided by interviewee]
“That was a very memorable occasion when I have been chosen among thousands of employees who worked in Pakistan and for CPEC projects. I've been honored and humbled to receive this award from the Chinese embassy. I have received a lot of compliments from colleagues and friends when the news was circulated in the newspapers,” he smiled while recalling this experience.
“After receiving this award, I'm feeling more responsibility on my shoulders now and I have to keep this bar further higher for myself.” he shared the feeling for receiving the award excitedly.
Pak-China cooperation in clean energy sector to be continued
What made Adil Ashraf proud of was not merely the reward he has received for his work, he said that the wind power project he’s engaged in has contributed greatly to electricity supply and people's livelihood in Pakistan by clean energy.
China Three Gorges Phase II Wind Power Plant. [Photo/China Economic Net]
Chinese wind power project has proven a lot of success stories and has established the wind power market in Pakistan. As Pakistan has set the target that 30% of the total energy mix consists of renewable energy by 2030, Adil believes that China's renewable energy projects, such as wind power projects, can greatly help achieve this goal.
In the interview, Adil Ashraf added that the CTG Phase II wind power project has been established in the wind corridor of Gharo-Jhimpir in Pakistan, where the area was quite underdeveloped before.
“However, in the past years, Chinese projects like ours spend a lot of money to improve people's lives, including scholarship grants, donations of teaching facilities, digging wells for local residents, and building solar power facilities. Overall, the areas around the project have been benefited tremendously," he said.
In 2019, China Three Gorges Wind Power Project donated solar energy equipment to local villagers. [Photo provided by interviewee]
Talking about future cooperation between China and Pakistan in clean energy, Adil Ashraf holds optimistic attitude, knowing that China is currently among the leading countries in terms of technology and implementation of renewable energy projects."Pakistan is sure to benefit from Chinese technology under CPEC," Adil said firmly.
The third wave of COVID-19 in Pakistan is currently severe, with a high number of confirmed cases. Under the circumstances, Adil Ashraf and his colleagues worked on providing vaccines and life supplies in a timely manner, to support the company helping its employees and the community at large.
“It is an old saying that the friend in need is the friend indeed. Pakistan and China both complemented and supported each other in the testing times.”Adil Ashraf said.
（Editor:Liao Yifan）
