Gomal Zam Multipurpose Project

With a catchment of 29,000km2, the Gomal Zam Multipurpose Project sits in the canyon section of the Gomal Zam River, a tributary of the Indus River, in the Northwest area of Pakistan. The Project is designed primarily for irrigation, flood control and power generation purposes.

The water retaining structure is a curved roller-compacted concrete gravity dam, with a maximum dam height of 133.5m and a crest length of 231m. The construction work kicked off in 2002 and it was fully commissioned in 2013.

Right bank of the Gomal Zam Dam

During the period of construction, engineers of China Water Resources Beifang Investigation, Design and Research Co. Ltd. tackled a series of key technical problems. The completion of the Project realizes the long-held dream of Pakistan and effectively solves the local seasonal water shortage. Throughout the year, 398 million m3 of water is delivered to the downstream irrigation areas, enabling the irrigation of 66,000-hectare farmland and generating a revenue of about 25.83 million USD thanks to crop irrigation in dry season. In addition, the Project expeditiously controls the flood of the Gomal Zam River which used to flood year after year, thus providing a safety guarantee for D.I. Khan, an important city in the downstream. Moreover, thanks to its annual power generation of 93.55 million KW·h, the Project promotes the development of the local economy.

Downstream of the Gomal Zam Dam

As a monument of the China-Pakistan friendship, the Gomal Zam Multipurpose Project testifies to the handwork and engineering ingenuity of dam builders from two countries.