CHENGDU — A joint China-Pakistan coal-fired power plant signed a loan contract with banks in Southwest China's Sichuan province.

Hubco Coal Power Plant raised $1.5 billion from a consortium of banks led by China Development Bank.

Construction of the power plant, costing about $2 billion, began in March by China Power Hub Generation Company, a joint venture between Pakistan's Hub Power Holdings Ltd and China Power International Investment Ltd.

With a total capacity of 1.32 gigawatts, the project comprises two coal-based power plants with capacity of 660 megawatts each.

The power plant is expected to start operations in August 2019, eventually producing 9 billion kilowatt-hours, meeting needs of 4 million Pakistani households and create 10,000 jobs in the country.

It is also one of the projects of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which connects Kashgar in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region with Gwadar Port.